WHAT DOES THE TERM: “THE GREAT REPLACEMENT” MEAN TO YOU?

 

         …Representative Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) believes in "The Great Replacement"

 

This theory has unfortunately, a great head start

 

OK, here’s the question:  “Have you ever heard of the “Great Replacement Theory?”

“What is it, and where did it come from?”

The answer to this question is that there are multiple iterations of the “Great Replacement theory” and they have been used by anti-immigrant groups, white supremacists, and others that include:

• The violent rhetoric of immigrant invasion.
• A theory that incorporates the inappropriate assumption that non-white immigrants will vote a certain way and are designated by U.S “elites” to diminish the political influence of white Americans.
• A theory that incorporates anti-Semitism in a web of the notion that Jewish elites are responsible for the whole “replacement plot”.

Regardless of which version is referenced, proponents of the “great replacement theory” almost always paint a “life or-death” scenario concerning the eventual fate of “white America”.

The theory contends that the nonwhite immigration must be stopped.  If not, the country will be on a “suicidal path”.

The theory often coincides directly, or indirectly, with their calls for violence.

So, ”Where did it come from, how long has it been around and who has been promoting it?

It apparently started around 1973, when the French author, Jean Raspail wrote a novel tiled “The Camp of the Saints”.  It is a tale of the destruction of our white, western society at the hands of mass immigration from the “Global South”.  The novel took off among anti-immigration groups in the 1980’s and 1990’s.  It remains a “touch-stone” today.

In 2012, Renaud Camus, another Frenchman that was heavily influence by Mr. Raspail, and he wrote “The Great Replacement”. 

In the book, he argued that white Europeans are being colonized by Black & Brown immigrants.  They are flooding the American continent into a potential “violent event”.

Through-out the 2010’s, the term and the theory slowly began to catch hold, especially among the fringe “alt-right” and white supremacist figures.  By 2017, “You Will Not Replace US” was a prominent slogan among white supremist who gathered at the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.  (You may recall that was the event that then President Trump said “good people from both sides” attended the event.) 

When the asylum-seeking migrants sought refuge in southern Europe, and then at the US– Mexico border, the theory began to emerge from more mainstream sources.  It 2017, then the Representative Steve King (R-Iowa) tweeted “We can’t restore our civilizations with somebody else's babies.”  Then in 2019, the theory was actually referenced by a prominent, far-right French politician named Marine Le Pen, that just recently barely lost her election as the President of France.

Back then, was when Tucker Carlson, and other Fox News hosts began making repeat references to the “replacement theory” in their segments on immigration.

So, where are, and when and what, are the consequences of the “Great Replacement Theory?”

Evil, hate and violence have sprung directly from the, “Great Replacement Theory”.

It all started at that event in Charlottesville, VA. on the Aug. 11, 2017, event called: “Unit the Right”.  The two day event sparked extreme violence that led to the death of a female counter-protester.  The extremist, kicked off the rally by referencing the “great replacement theory” and the chant: “You Will Not Replace Us.” And “Jews Will Not Replace Us.”

On Oct. 27, 2018, 11 people in a Pittsburgh synagogue were killed in one of the deadliest attacks against the Jewish community in the U.S.  The shooter’s belief in the “great replacement theory” precepted the attack.  He believed that HIAS, a Jewish-American nonprofit organization that provides aid and assistance to refugees was working to “bring invaders into the U.S. that would kill our people”.

On March 15, 2019. 51 people were killed in consecutive terrorist attacks on mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.  The shooter’s manifesto repeated and directly referenced the “replacement theory” The title of the manifesto was “The Great Replacement”. 

On August 3, 2019, 23 people were killed in a mass shooting at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas.  The terrorist targeted Latino shoppers, and his manifesto also listed the Christchurch shooter as an inspiration.

How about today?  How is the “Great Replacement Theory” being used?

Back to Fox News, Tucker Carlson once again has touted the “great replacement theory” on his broadcast, multiple times.  He has referenced it directly for the first time on an April 8 episode of Tucker Carlson Tonight. And then again on September 22.  Other political figures on the right and the ‘Far Right” have also brazenly endorsed the theory in recent weeks.

Sept 15: Lt. Gov, Dan Patrick (R-Texas)  said of the Haitian migrants arriving at the border said: “this is tryng to take over our country without firing a shot”.

Sept. 23: The conservative activist and radio host Charlie Kirk said on his show that the Biden administration’s immigration policy “is about bringing in voters that they like and honestly, diminishing and decreasing white demographics in America.”

Sept. 24: Representative Brian Babin (R-Texas) endorsed the theory, stating, “They want to change America, that want to replace the American electorate wwith third-world immigrants that are coming in illegally.”

Sept. 25. Representative Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) tweeted: “@TuckerCarlson is CORRECT about Replacement Theory as he explains what is happening to America”

The point is that many other prominent figures, including former President Donald Trump, have used the related rhetoric of a migrant “invasion.”

It is tempting not to engage with a conspiracy theory so wrapped in xenophobia and extremism.  But as the “Great Replacement Theory” becomes more mainstream, it is imperative that we understand the history and dangerous extremism behind this school of thought.  It is even more important to highlight those who have effectively pushed back

In a following articles I will take on the responses to the above events and how we can combat this rise of “The Great Replacement”.

But be aware, this event has had years to develop and it won’t go away quickly or easily.  Especially with so many people getting their misinformation for sources such as social media, right-wing politicians and so called news sources such as Fox News,

Copyright G. Ater 2022