The Homophobic and Racist True Colors of the Tea Party Movement

by Michael Jones · 2010-03-20 17:01:00 UTC
Topics:

Tea PartyThe Tea Party movement might like to think that it stands for a new revolutionary wave of political activism. But there is absolutely nothing that separates the Tea Party movement from some of the most homophobic and racist elements of American politics. Need proof? Just ask Rep. Barney Frank, Rep. Andre Carson, and Rep. John Lewis.

As the Tea Party movement swarms like an agitated group of bees inside the Beltway, trying to stop passage of health care reform, they're taking their aggression out on any Democratic lawmaker they can get within five feet of. That includes Reps. Frank, Carson and Lewis. So how did Tea Party activists greet these guys?

By calling Barney Frank a "f**got" and calling Reps. Carson and Lewis the N-word.  Classy, eh?  Like mixing Marge Schott and David Duke, with a little Rev. Fred Phelps thrown in for extra seasoning. This isn't a rebirth of political activism. These are the same right-wing homophobes and racists who have been responsible for some of the worst moments in American history. Call them Tea Partiers, call them white nationalists, or call them anti-gay activists. Either way, they're all the same.

But really, should anyone be surprised by today's outburst?  These are the same folks who just this week attacked an elderly man with Parkinson's disease. That's right, while protesting health care reform, a group of angry white folks started heckling an old man with Parkinson's, throwing crumpled up dollar bills in his face, telling him to get a job, and blaming him for creating socialized medicine.

If Democrats have any sense about them, they'll make every campaign commercial this Fall a clip of these Tea Party folks. The health care debate might be messy and complex, with folks all over the place in terms of how they feel about it.

But you survey Americans and find out how many of them want to see legislators called "fa*gots" or the N-word, or how many want to see elderly people with Parkinson's attacked in the streets, and I think you'll find that regardless of where folks stand on health care reform, they'll generally be repulsed.

At least I hope so. Or I just might be joining Rush Limbaugh in Costa Rica.

Photo credit: Fibonacci Blue

Michael Jones is a Change.org Editor. He has worked in the field of human rights communications for a decade, most recently for Harvard Law School.
PREVIOUS STORY:
White Nationalists To March In Jackson, Mich.
NEXT STORY:
On Aeroflot's Birthday, Russian Activists Condemn Company's Anti-Gay Record. And You Can Help.

COMMENTS (36)

    Comment Policy

    · All fields are required to comment.

    [X]

    Comments on Change.org are meant for further exploration and evaluation of the campaign on Change.org. To that end, we welcome constructive comments. However, we reserve the right to delete comments which, as determined solely in our discretion: (1) are offensive, abusive, or off-topic; (2) include content solely intended to personally attack the campaign creator, (3) are designed to subvert or hijack comment threads rather than contribute to them; and/or (4) violate our terms of service and/or privacy policy. Repeat offenders may be permanently removed from the site at our discretion. Please also be advised that: (A) we do not actively curate and/or monitor in any manner whatsoever the comments made on the Change.org platform, and (B) the creator of each campaign on Change.org may remove any comment at her/his/its discretion.