It’s terrifying. These idiot kids use these tactics and then have the gall to proclaim themselves “anti-fascist”. What’s more fascist than using intimidation and fear to compel others into doing as you say, and following your orders?

What’s scary is that I can see myself in her position. A BLM supporter, but in that place and time, just being overwhelmed with that daze of “Wait, WTF is happening, why are these people surrounding me? (Is it because I’m a while woman and they think I’m the enemy whereas the white men around us and among us are being ignored and left alone?)” and just with the whole shock and surprise of the situation not knowing what to do. And then not wanting to cooperate with something, not because I disagree with BLM, but because I disagree with this intimidation tactic. This “Do it or else” tactic. The assuming that I’m a bad person if I don’t bow to pressure through fear.

I was reading recently a great paper on how “dark victimhood” - basically, the utilization of a created victimhood narrative by people possessing the “dark triad” of psychopathy - is more common than we think, because those people find a way to take advantage of whatever tools they have at their disposal to use and manipulate others to get what they want. It both very badly hurts the causes of genuine victims and diverts resources towards themselves. It’s a very scary thing that people aren’t aware that a psychopath or a narcissist isn’t just a white guy with an amazing haircut in a high-paying corporate job. It could be anyone, and that person will use any means they have to manipulate others to bend to their will. A person can be a woman, a racial minority, a religious minority, non-heterosexual, or claim a gender identity different from their birth sex, and still be a completely dangerous human being, completely separate from both their lack of American Psycho-ness and their minority status. And they can and will use a claim of victimhood to achieve their goals. I wish more people knew this. It’s so insidious.