Racist tropes, dehumanization, or demonizing are all methods historically used to “otherize” people. I understand the underlying human urge to distance yourself from those you abhor, but stripping them of their humanity is not the way to do it. Every effort I’ve seen here trying to excuse the use of this type of language has been a weak attempt at self-justification.
When I was a very young man I learned the perfect way to insult racists, but I can’t use it these days. I’m not going to tell y’all the whole story, but if you want to get under a bigot’s skin call him the n-word. It works like you wont believe, but I hope you can see my point… It’s totally unacceptable under any and all circumstances.
The policing of language is nothing new. We’ve all had to adapt over the course of our lifetimes. Besides, there are better ways to insult these people. One way would be to simply use their full name in it’s entirety like we do with serial killers, or how your mom used to let you know you were really in trouble.
A better way is to insult their ideas. It’s always better to attack their policies than to attack them as an individual anyway. Lately all their proposals are fascist and un-American, but you distract from that when you call the politician a fascist or un-American. Do y’all see what I’m getting at?
The followers of criminal defendant and #FPOTUS Donald John Trump are not larval insects… It’s not okay to equate Florida Governor Ronald Dion DeSantis with the Devil. He’s not a monster, he’s not a demon, he’s a human being… He’s a horrible deplorable excuse of a human being; but he is one nonetheless.
Maybe just keep in mind what kind of human being you’d prefer history remember you as...