Back in early January I blogged about the mythical persecution of American Christianity that some conservative Christians believe pervades a society filled with 78% Christians. Quite a bit has happened since then, and I thought it was worth another look, given that this paranoia doesn't seem to be going away any time soon. Combine the very real fear among some of the Right that Christianity is under serious attack with the equally crazy paranoia that Obama Is Coming For All The Guns, and it makes for some seriously dangerous beliefs. This was revealed by a new poll showing that 29% of Americans, and 44% of Republicans, believe that an armed revolution might be necessary in the next few years to "protect our liberties." That is scary stuff, and the conspiracy-laden propaganda spewed by right-wing media fuels it.
As I've said before, "threatened" Christians mistake their decreasing ability to impose their will and values on the entire country for being persecuted. They scan the headlines for any event they could possibly construe as being offensive to "true Christians" (which they often equate with true Americans) and make serious hay out of it. The annual "War on Christmas" is a perfect example, and this year Fox also spent a week attacking the "War on Easter" by finding a few random school districts across the country who were having "Spring egg hunts" and declaring that this means the end of Christianity as we know it. When I was in school, we had "spring recess" at Easter time. Everyone knew what it was about, and no one cared. It is only an issue because the right-wing media wants to make it an issue. Moreover, you could argue that even "spring recess" coinciding with Easter is giving preferential treatment to a religion and is therefore unconstitutional; can you imagine the reaction if there was a district-wide "recess" that fell on the same day as Rosh Hashanah or the final feast day of Ramadan?
Lately, however, most of the perceived persecution has revolved around gay issues, as I touched on a bit in my post on marriage equality. While entitled to their personal beliefs about homosexuality, conservative Christians refuse to accept that they are losing the fight on gay rights, and interpret this as an attack on their religion. As I've noted, in the face of American law, gay rights and Christianity have nothing to do with each other. Again, it's only an issue because they make it one, and then think their way of life is under attack because a lot of people don't agree with them. This spirit of victimhood came to the fore this week when Jason Collins came out as the first openly gay player in the "big four" of American men's team sports, and this "witty" cartoon was a popular reaction.
Sigh. Where to begin with this? Supposedly a "gotcha" moment of "liberal media" hypocrisy, it's actually yet another example of false equivalency BS. First of all, it's comparing two things that are completely different; one is a personal choice (faith), the other is not (sexual orientation). It's actually possible to be both gay and Christian (I know some). Second, the idea that Tim Tebow or other Christian athletes are silenced by the media is ludicrous. My interest in the NFL is basically less than zero, and even I know all about Tebow's faith. His name has entered the vernacular as slang for praying on one knee, for Pete's sake. Third, how many openly Christian pro athletes are there? Hundreds? Thousands? Do they face possible awkwardness or outright discrimination in the locker room or among fans and employers because of their faith? Doubtful. Given the numbers, it stands to reason that a majority of pro athletes are Christian. Tebow has the right to talk about his faith all he wants, but doing so isn't exactly taking a heroic stand. Last, I agree that in an ideal world Collins coming out wouldn't be a big story. Eventually, gay athletes won't be. They will be as "normal" as Christian athletes. However, Collins was the first, so of course it's going to be a big story. His openness helps to counter the stereotype that gay men are "wussies" (as assumption clearly seen in contrast to the fact that lesbian athletes tend to be more accepted), and will hopefully help to normalize the existence of male gay pro athletes. So yes, Collins coming out is a significant event, and it has nothing to do with how the media treats Tim Tebow. He is not being persecuted. Get over it.
One more example of perceived persecution: recently an Air Force memo came out that reminded officers to "avoid the actual or apparent use of their position to promote their personal religious beliefs to their subordinates or to extend preferential treatment for any religion." This is in line with standard Department of Defense policy that proselytizing is not allowed in the military regardless of faith and upholds the separation of church and state, as the military is, naturally, a government body. But for some on the Christian Right, of course, this is an attempt to destroy Christianity. The headline on Breitbart.com screamed that the Pentagon might court-martial soldiers who share their Christianity. Family Research Council VP Jerry Boykin called it a "direct assault" on his faith and an attempt to destroy both the military and traditional American values. This is where I'm afraid we're at an impasse. I believe it's a traditional American value not to impose your religious beliefs on someone, as enshrined in the First Amendment; Boykin disagrees. It's this sort of stalemate that leads to a persecution complex and thoughts that a little revolution might be necessary.
Now, in contrast, let's look at some real examples of religious demagoguery and fearmongering, shall we?
Posted on Facebook by a duly elected Tennessee county commissioner. Also in Tennessee, the building site of a mosque under heavy protest was set on fire. And again in Tennessee, some legislators were worried that a new mop sink in a Capitol building restroom was meant for Muslims to wash their feet.
Select quotes of Pat Robertson:
- Islam is "an evil system that is bringing death and destruction throughout the globe.”
- "It’s Islam, it’s Islam. Every time you look up — these are angry people, it’s almost like it’s demonic that is driving them to kill and to maim and to destroy and to blow themselves up. It’s a religion of chaos."
- "I think the Antichrist is Islam. I really do, and I think it’s a system. ... It’s centered on Mohammed, who defied Jesus, he said Jesus wasn’t the son of God, I mean that’s Antichrist."
Conservative firebrand Ann Coulter: The dead Boston bombing suspect's wife should be "arrested for wearing a hijab." She later claimed this was a spontaneous joke. Hardy har. Don't you get it??? Head scarves, amirite?? I love how conservatives get to explain away their racism and bigotry by claiming that liberals don't have a sense of humor, and then get put back on TV to continue making big bucks.
Conservative religious groups got Lowe's to pull its advertising from the TLC show "All-American Muslim" which dared to portray Muslims as average Americans.
And last, of course, we have the consequences of vile words:
Mohamed A. Salim, a Muslim cabdriver who served in Iraq and at the U.S. military facility at Guantanamo Bay, claims a passenger he picked up last week in Northern Virginia attacked him for being a "jihadist," comparing him to the two men that allegedly carried out the Boston marathon bombing.
“If you’re a Muslim, you’re a [expletive] jihadist,” the passenger says. “You are just as bad as the rest of them.”Full story here, via TPM.
The video ends with a blur of motion and audio of Salim asking, “Why are you punching me? Sir, why are you punching me?”
The passenger replies: “You’re a [expletive] Muslim.”
Get the picture? Most, if not all, of these people proclaim themselves as good, God-fearing Christians. They bristle and whine and spew outrage at any perceived offense at their religion they can possibly find. And yet it's perfectly ok for them to demonize an entire religion - 1.5 billion people, second only to their own faith. Because apparently, they have all the answers. Now who's being hypocritical?
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