We have experienced in recent times growth in extremism that cuts across the civilian population and into the ranks of some officials. Watching such behaviors in real time can often lead us to different types of conclusions but not necessarily the one's that end in a beneficial outcome. While in the situation below we might be looking at what appears to be a single phenomenon we also mustn't ignore the similarities of this situation with others experienced across the country (In terms of mental health and destructive behaviors.). Gaining a grasp on how quickly false information can spread and radicalize preexisting bias to act without conscious is concerning; whether in the capital or in our hometowns.
Extremism within Local Groups
Thus far in the situation in which I am familiar we have a group of people (core group leadership) who sought to gain financially and socially by exploiting hate through their social connections (including those in law enforcement) to remove a family from "their town". It wasn't as though that family did anything wrong but they did put up a red line when it came to patterned intentionally rude, destructive and potentially illegal behaviors (I doubt these members will ever see themselves as doing anything wrong. Sadism sanctioned by social "immunity".).
That ability to tell this group "no" in a town where most of their peers have become accustomed to a distorted pecking order within their ex sport playing culture (set 30+ years ago in highschool) seemed to throw the "leadership" off guard. While it may be normal to implement boundaries when mental health turns aggressive it isn't normal to have to deal with a larger group of mediocre ex sports payers you don't have an issue with (including at least one if not more stalking law enforcement officers.) To maintain control and "teach a lesson" they targeted one of the kids and started a smear campaign to radicalize their followers to engage in intimidation tactics (...which mirrors what we might find in less developed nations.)
Most of these group members are good people and without prompting would not have acted (Most likely didn't act but some were all too willing to take extra steps. The question is, "Why are you involved in any way?" Reluctantly, you might hear we wanted to help one of "our own"....but then fall short on facts). Those that did act are supported through their social networks by silent agreement/disagreement and/or blind support of the perpetrators (See research on polarized and hyperconnected social networks acceptance of false information to create cascades on twitter, 'News Sharing, Persuasion, and Spread of Misinformation on Social Networks'. (Hsu, Ajorlou & Jadbabaie, 2020). In this case the group utilized Facebook but the process is likely similar and with factors as other social media mechanisms. Some of those members know their social group were acting immorally and illegally but were silenced through fear (We saw this happen in Nazi Germany were people who disagreed went silent through a culture of fear. One by one they fell. Imagine if you were the one in the crowd who disagreed, didn't think Jews were at fault for Germany's problems, and voiced your opinion! Yikes! 😬)
Levels of Accountability (Silent to Involved):
There are at least four different things going on here 1.) the initial group 2.) the corrupt law enforcement officer(s), 3.) the extremists within the mediocre sports group and 4.) the immaturity of the larger sports culture. What should happen isn't an easy call because doing nothing when behaviors were grotesque would be inappropriate while at the same time locking people up and throwing away the key might be counter to what a long term resolution would look like.
While I might be able to go into particular depth on each of these concepts I believe that each person should be judged on their merit. To do that it is helpful to take into account their prior socialization, mental health issues, criminality, pecking order, etc... While they acted in a group there was a level of individual responsibility of each of the members who should "own" their behaviors. Even when crimes were being committed it looks like most stayed silent (Indication of powerlessness and diluted sense of shared responsibility).
Beyond accountability for the most egregious offenders I would say an awareness of the group of how they were manipulated (critical thinking skills), correcting of false information (especially that designed to damage and encourage violence against the intended targets), how mental health can impact people's behaviors, and more awareness of pro-American values of inclusion (I'm not sure where their values came from but they are antithetical to the values of most of American society; save the radicals).
The Bigger Picture-Exclusion to Inclusion:
I think it will be hard to change people who are exclusive to inclusive as they have been socialized for a long time to view themselves as superior to people who they view different than themselves (They have the blueprint of an organization run by a narcissist managed through comparisons, shallow values, self-seeking behaviors and conflict. Groups become extensions of hate when individual members are not empowered to stand for central values as codified by a wider society. See Braun,2017.). This was not a normal situation it was more of a Stephen King type creepy novel. Our system was not designed to accurately understand and deal with local extremism and therefore it was hard for authorities to recognize the behaviors quickly (Why mental health and research can lead to solutions. See Michigan Coding and Solving Hate Crimes).
“Half the harm that is done in this world is due to people who want to feel important. They don't mean to do harm, but the harm does not interest them. Or they do not see it, or they justify it because they are absorbed in the endless struggle to think well of themselves.”
Furthermore, there are members of law enforcement who lack accountability for mischievous behaviors so even after they went rogue there wasn't enough mechanisms in place to hold them to account (Redesigning the system to support good officers and remove bad ones could be helpful. Could we really trust rogue officers to be honest and work in the best interest of society and the laws? Think about it. Mistakes can be trained but a criminal mindset must be removed. The wisest approach we can take is to maintain the integrity of our law enforcement institutions. I support good officers and institutional integrity. As soon as a few bad apples act without account it creates wider problems in society. Its short versus long term thinking.). Likewise, much of the behaviors were intentional and masked indicating it wasn't the first time they have circumvented the law in a coordinated way to avoid detection (Opening a question of other victims.)
How does one get those who hate to respect the value inherent in their fellow Americans? Mob supporters acted blindly with no conception of right or wrong and no actual justification for the behaviors (If you ask them they would say my children and I are pretty friendly but they heard from so and so......) but on the commands and misinformation of their "leadership". How does one reform such ignorance when it spreads intentionally to others (including some employers and businesses) who now feel morally justified to further their discriminatory viewpoints despite the nagging of a higher moral conscious (The risks and consequences are transferred to the targets who must then deal with the issue over and over in its more microaggressive form. The only difference this time is that I feel there is a duty and a bigger American purpose to ensure we don't regress in our local-national development or make the turn towards what Germany did prior to WWII. )?
Hate is a disease growing in our communities (not everyone but a group of motivated followers paralleling what we might find in some poor radical villages overseas) and will need serious action by our lawmakers and administrators to solve adequately. Extremism exists within hyper politics that gives such people "the right" to act with social blessing and lack of local enforcement. Truth is.....likely my family and I will continue to be targets when and if the economy takes a downturn, another lockdown, lost election, divorce, financial problems, etc.... as it is all projection that has nothing to do with our behavior but to do with "perceptions" of worth! . False judgements, comparisons and appraisals "are targeted at the hate target itself, rather than at specific actions carried out by that target" (Ortony, Clore, & Collins, 1988).The sad thing is what they think they are targeting me for is a reflection of who they are....and I'm am the opposite of what they perceive me to be in their socially constructed reality. We just needed to enlighten the situation with a brighter lamp to see the details....in this case torch 🗽. See Through the Looking Glass, Darkly: Perceptions of Hate in Interpersonal Relationships (Aumer, 2015).
(Like in Gestalt psychology the perpetrators filled in all the blanks of information they didn't know or understand thereby revealing much about their latent thought processes. In this situation the group's members devalued me and my children....yet on a overall factual comparison I'm not seeing why they feel so superior. They don't have enough information for an accurate judgement. I have lots of flaws but I know what they are...I'm not sure they have a clue of their more serious issues 😲 A famous philosopher and religious figure once stated, "first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye" . Lack of accountability often leads to feeling that harming the targets is justified. Here is an interesting study on devaluating and hate. When you read this report don't get hung up on the examples it is any race, religion, or group who devalues others. 'Why we Hate' Fischer, et. al 2018 ).
Where do we go from here? It is up to each of us to decide what is in the best interest of everyone involved and the generations after us. If our American values and Constitution will be our primary directive or if "other" sources of power/authority can carve out through unlegislated and unwritten laws/"rules". While I view myself as a single father trying to buy groceries I'm sure they view me as something different. I suspect the essential rub is the image of who is "an American"? I have already decided (Its an internal value not associated with color, religion, ethnicity. Meaning a more enlightened society that can enlighten other nations as a beacon of fair treatment and opportunity for the diligent.). While it might sound "radical" to you....it doesn't to me! 💕 One foot in front of the other. 👣
Aumer, K. (2015). Through the Looking Glass, Darkly: Perceptions of Hate in Interpersonal Relationships. Journal of Relationships Research 6 DOI:10.1017/jrr.2014.14
Braun S. (2017). Leader Narcissism and Outcomes in Organizations: A Review at Multiple Levels of Analysis and Implications for Future Research. Frontiers in psychology, 8, 773. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00773Fischer, A., et. al. (2018). Why we Hate. Emotion Review, 10 (4). Retrieved December 15th, 2021 https://bcsh.bard.edu/files/2019/06/Why-We-Hate.pdf
Hsu, Chin-Chia and Ajorlou, Amir and Jadbabaie, Ali, News Sharing, Persuasion, and Spread of Misinformation on Social Networks (July 1, 2020). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3391585 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3391585
Ortony, A., Clore, G. L., & Collins, A. (1988). The cognitive structure of emotions. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press
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