...jingoism, racism, fear, religious fundamentalism: these are the ways of appealing to people if you're trying to organize a mass base of support for policies that are really intended to crush them.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Leaders use fear and prejudice to gain support for policies that ultimately harm the people they claim to serve.
- In plain terms
- Rulers manipulate people using fear and hate to get backing for harmful policies.
- What can you take from it?
- Be wary when leaders use fear or racism to rally support.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do we spot manipulative rhetoric?
- What policies hide behind fear appeals?
Another view
Sometimes genuine threats do require strong collective responses.
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