Speaking on Far-Right Violence Surrounding Presidential Election; Other Updates

I am honored to have accepted an invitation to speak at a post-election panel on November 5 (wonder if we’ll know who the next president is by then!) at Eastern Washington University alongside Joseph Lowndes (co-author of Producers, Parasites, Patriots: Race and the New Right-Wing Politics of Precarity) and Jason Wilson (the Guardian reporter whose beat on the far-right has included exposing former state Representative Matt Shea’s extensive far-right and violent ties).

Over the past month, I have spoken to a few community groups about the likelihood of hate group and right-wing insurgent violence surrounding the upcoming election, as well as the possibility of authoritarian/fascist coup, and how the left might be able to push back with mass protest and a general strike. I have been sharing around this article from Waging Nonviolence: “Ten Things You Need to Know to Stop a Coup.” I’m continuing to cover this and related topics, including with an upcoming radio appearance at the end of the month on Milwaukee Riverwest Radio’s The Grass is Greener.

I am organizing an upcoming zoom forum for Bridges Not Walls, a local Muslim-Catholic dialogue group that works against Islamophobia. The working title is “Facts, Fears, and Faith: Overcoming Islamophobia and the Road to Understanding.” I will share information on sign-up shortly. Speakers include Jordan Denari Duffner, author of Finding Jesus Among Muslims: How Loving Islam Makes Me a Better Catholic as well as a new, forthcoming book on Islamophobia. This is timely: The new papal encyclical Fratelli Tutti emphasizes the necessity of “encounter” with other faiths and begins and opens with mention of two Catholic saints who contributed to Muslim-Catholic understanding.

I am pleased to see that a non-profit that does work against hate is developing an extensive guide for parents on preventing white nationalist recruitment of teens. This is urgent and important work. I’m an external reviewer for the document, and I am helping the writers make connections with others who do research in this area.