The election of Donald Trump as the President of the United States has been one of the most contentious topics in the past five years. Proponents and opponents of President Trump have been holding protests and demonstrations across the United States in a wave similar to the Civil Rights movement.

However, none resemble historical marches quite like those held by the alt-right. As defined by Merriam-Webster, members of the alt-right “reject mainstream conservative politics and espouse extremist beliefs and policies typically centered on ideas of white nationalism.”

The alt-right is a distinct group from conservatives and Republicans. Scott Buchan, sophomore political science major and president of UMBC College Republicans, acknowledged that there are not many truly Republican protests. “UMBC College Republicans talks directly to constituents at events, and door knocking,” Buchan explained, adding, “I think that protesting is a lower priority to Republicans and that Republicans would be more likely to contact representatives, go to town halls or events, or speak with their vote.”

In contrast, the “Unite the Right” rally held in Charlottesville, Virginia in August of 2017, during which one counter-protester was killed, resembled nothing less than a Ku Klux Klan rally from the 1960s. Marchers, predominantly white and male, carried torches and shouted nationalist chants while traveling through the city.

Unite the Right participants carried Nazi and Confederate flags and held posters advocating for white supremacy. Traditional conservatives tend to focus on taxation and national spending. As possible topics for signs at a Republican protest, Buchan highlighted “[the importance for] America to keep her national sovereignty” and the need to “reduce spending to get the national debt under control.”

During the Civil Rights movement, white supremacist rallies were used to strike fear in the hearts of black people and discourage them from fighting for their rights. Contrasted with liberal marches like the Women’s March in January of 2017, which was very politically motivated, the Unite the Right rally was held only to incite fear.

However, in the age of social media, this technique backfires more than it causes panic. Many of the people photographed at the rally were quickly found on Facebook and Twitter. Doxxing, the act of publishing private information such as the name and address of a person, has become one of the biggest counter-activities that those who oppose the alt-right engage in.

In some cases, the doxxed person faces no retribution. In other cases, the person is fired from their job or ostracized from their family for their beliefs. While this result may seem harsh, consider the fact that the person in question was marching to end the rights of an entire group of people just for being different than them.

The “White Civil Rights Rally” planned for Aug. 11 and 12 in Washington, D.C. will likely end up the same way. The white nationalists who march will be vastly outnumbered by counter-protesters and their message of fear will not spread.

While free speech is protected by the Constitution, the only provisions are in reference to Congress making laws “abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.” The first amendment does not say that other citizens cannot take issue with a person’s stance, particularly if the stance is hateful. White nationalist rallies and protests feel encouraged by the United States’ current administration, but so do rallies and protests by liberals and leftists.

Description

In this webinar, we will be going over the timeline for the Adobe Enterprise Renewal for 2018-2019 along with new Adobe Sign options available to MEEC institutions.

In this competitive Higher Education landscape, using Adobe Sign and digital workflows can buy you back 30%-50% of your daily routine and allow you to focus your efforts on the reason you were hired – To interact with your internal and external colleagues more efficiently and allow yourself more time for critical thinking and to solve the real problems and challenges within your organization.

Please attend a webinar hosted by Adobe to see how Adobe Sign can improve efficiencies within your workgroup environment.

Presenters

Tom Bernetich, Digital Practice Lead, Adobe Document Cloud

July, 2018: Dr. Ian Anson’s article on democratic support in America in The Conversation

The shooting at the Capital Gazette offices in late June of this year was surprising and devastating. The shooter* from Laurel, Maryland, killed five people and injured others. He targeted the Capital Gazette because of an incident and subsequent lawsuit in 2011.

The Baltimore Sun reports that, despite the shooter spending almost a decade harassing a woman online and fighting a defamation case against the Capital Gazette for writing about his stalking case, he was able to purchase a shotgun legally in 2017. This is a direct failure of gun safety laws in America.

People who are critical of restricting gun laws often talk about keeping assault rifles legal to own. According to the National Rifle Association, rifles and shotguns can be purchased and carried without a permit in Maryland. This opens up access to people who intend to use their weapons on innocent people. Many of the mass shootings in schools and workplaces reported in 2018 have been carried out by perpetrators using rifles.

Rifles, shotguns and handguns should be held to the same standard in every state. Assault rifles and other military-grade weapons’ legality would be much less of an issue if they all required stringent background checks and permit laws. Anyone who desires a firearm for self defense over a specific age limit would be allowed to apply for a permit, just like the issuance of driving permits.

Another common argument from pro-gun advocates is that guns are not the problem, mental illness is. This argument still ties back to the need for stronger background checks. If people really cared about the mental health of shooters and potential shooters, they would also be proponents of free mental health care services, which they often are not.

Because the change to gun permit laws has been slow, there are other actions that citizens should take. Wendi Winters, one of the victims of the Capital Gazette shooting, had participated in active shooter training at her church a few weeks before the attack. More places of worship, workplaces and schools should offer classes on surviving an active shooter situation.

UMBC has an official Emergency Response Plan for generalized “hostile intruders.” Alerts via phone and email are also broadcast in case of an emergency. However, there is no mandatory, in-person emergency preparation for students and staff at the school.

Unfortunately, it is a reality of American society that mass shootings will continue to take innocent lives. Through advocacy for stronger background check and permit laws and an increase in formal shooter preparation, hopefully the amount of shootings and fatalities will decrease.

*We have deliberately chosen not to identify the shooter by name.