Whenever conservatives castigate the blatant lawlessness, vandalism, threats, and violence that have regularly been present in the nationwide George Floyd protests, liberals accuse us of failing to distinguish “peaceful protestors” from looters and rioters.
Superficially, this distinction makes sense. Looters and rioters are an imminent threat to public welfare. Peaceful protestors, by definition, are not. And to the extent that their protests are truly peaceful, they are unquestionably protected by the First Amendment.
But the non-violent protestors actually are far more damaging to the long-term fabric of our civil society than the rioters. Though many of the protestors have entirely sincere intentions, they are dangerous because their protests—often using ritual humiliation of their adversaries—are based fundamentally on lies and slander about white people, about police, and about America.
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