Trump knows what he’s doing when he calls his enemies “vermin” in his speeches and online. He’s dehumanizing them. This has happened to my community twice in my lifetime: once during World War II, and again during the pandemic. It is so dangerous, and Trump knows it. He’s preparing his base to do things that you can’t do to other humans, only to subhumans. Be warned. Be vigilant.

@georgetakei To be fair it is no worse than what the left has done to him. They have called him that and worse.

That said I dont particularly mind dehumanizing someone who doesnt act human (compassion towards their fellow man)... So dehumanize away, at worst ill judge you on who you target (as im sure Trump is targeting anyone who doesnt support him it is that aspect that speaks against him for me).

@freemo @georgetakei It's very different. What's being referred to here is the dehumanisation of a class of people, in a manner which is recognised as the fourth step of genocide. There's a big difference between insulting a person by calling them an animal, and using similar words to flatten an entire group of people into a faceless mass.

hmd.org.uk/learn-about-the-hol

I recommend reading about the Rwandan genocide in particular, and the very significant role played by talk radio.

@freemo @georgetakei To be clear, I'm not implying that Trump is planning a genocide against liberals; in pointing out the very effective role of dehumanisation in getting an audience to a point where they are willing to enact violence that they never otherwise would.

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