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Blood and Politics
Blood and Politics: The History of the White Nationalist Movement from the Margins to the Mainstream | Leonard Zeskind
2 posts | 1 reading | 6 to read
More than fifteen years in the making, Blood and Politics is the most comprehensive history to date of the white supremacist movement as it has evolved over the past three-plus decades. Leonard Zeskind draws heavily upon court documents, racist publications, and first-person reports, along with his own personal observations. An internationally recognized expert on the subject who received a MacArthur Fellowship for his work, Zeskind ties together seemingly disparate strands—from neo-Nazi skinheads, to Holocaust deniers, to Christian Identity churches, to David Duke, to the militia and beyond. Among these elements, two political strategies—mainstreaming and vanguardism—vie for dominance. Mainstreamers believe that a majority of white Christians will eventually support their cause. Vanguardists build small organizations made up of a highly dedicated cadre and plan a naked seizure of power. Zeskind shows how these factions have evolved into a normative social movement that looks like a demographic slice of white America, mostly blue-collar and working middle class, with lawyers and Ph.D.s among its leaders. When the Cold War ended, traditional conservatives helped birth a new white nationalism, most evident now among anti-immigrant organizations. With the dawn of a new millennium, they are fixated on predictions that white people will lose their majority status and become one minority among many. The book concludes with a look to the future, elucidating the growing threat these groups will pose to coming generations.
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brendanmleonard
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I'm sure I have talked about this book before, but it came back to me as I watched the stunning new documentary Oklahoma City (available on Netflix). It's a tough sit (TWs abound), but a great primer into the history of white nationalism, and how easy it is for words to become violence. Zeskind appears in the docu, and his book is long, but essential reading for today's America (although it is 10 years out of date). #bookandmovie #sorry4thebummer

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brendanmleonard
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This isn't for Diversity Friday - but I've found it important for me to understand how we got here, how we have always been here. These books are tough reads, but I think they're essential for diagnosing the infection in the American body politic - what we must reckon with while we fight for a cure.

BekahB Before the Storm and Nixonland have been on my TBR stack for a while. I need to get to them. 8y
BookishFeminist Agreed. These are great choices. I seek solace in history and understanding too. 8y
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