Excellent piece- The Anti-Authoritarians Strike Back

[DemocratSinceBirth]

At precisely the moments when diversity comes under threat, those who cherish it are galvanized in its defense.

In Karen Stenner’s penetrating 2005 study of the forces that tear societies apart, she explains that some people strongly prefer diversity, dynamism, and difference, while others have a powerful, possibly innate need for oneness and sameness. Politicians can exploit the latter predisposition, as Donald Trump did when he told his fellow Americans that their usurping Kenyan president was too lazy, disloyal, and incompetent to stop Mexican rapists, Muslim terrorists, and minority street gangs—and that only he could stop the “carnage” on America’s streets.

Trump’s unusually naked authoritarian rhetoric stoked dark fears and prejudices, activating the latent predispositions toward intolerance possessed by some in his base. Anti-immigrant sentiments increased. Calls for a Muslim ban were cheered. A fearful faction turned out. And despite losing the popular vote, Trump reshaped his party.

Before Republican Ed Gillespie was defeated in the Virginia governor’s race this week, he ran a campaign pitched to trigger the authoritarian instincts of those same voters.


https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/11/the-anti-authoritarians-strike-back/545405/#article-comments