Bill Berkowitz for BuzzFlash: “We Are the Christian Taliban,” Vincent James, Popular Christian Nationalist YouTuber
Christian right wingers are the American Taliban. (newsonline)
July 5, 2022
By Bill Berkowitz
“We will not stop until ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ is a reality and even worse than that.” -- Vincent James
For years, observers of America’s Christian Right have warned that there are similarities in the views of Christian nationalists and the Taliban. Not necessarily in their actions – although bombing abortion clinics, killing abortion providers, murdering people in a Buffalo supermarket are Taliban-like terrorist actions. Christian nationalist leaders would of course deny any similarities. Now however, especially in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision overturning women’s reproductive rights, Christian nationalists are boldly declaring that more needs to be done to eviscerate the separation of church and state. And some are openly declaring themselves, the “Christian Taliban.”
Commenting on Congresswoman Lauren Boebert’s remarks calling for an end to the separation of church and state, Illinois Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger said “There is no difference between this and the Taliban.” Kinzinger added that as a Christian, “We must oppose the Christian Taliban,”
Kinzinger, who is serving on the committee investigating the Donald Trump-inspired attack on the Capitol, was reacting to an address Boebert delivered at the Cornerstone Christian Center in Basalt, Illinois. According to The Guardian, “Boebert said she was exhausted by the separation of church and state principle; this principle is a key tenet of the US constitution. ‘The church is supposed to direct the government,’ Boebert said, according to the Hill. “The government is not supposed to direct the church. That is not how our founding fathers intended it.”
Boebert added: “I’m tired of this separation of church and state junk – that’s not in the constitution. It was in a stinking letter and it means nothing like they say it does.”
Baptist News Global reported in mid-November of last year that “At a rally in San Antonio as part of the ‘ReAwaken America’ tour, former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn said the quiet part out loud: ‘If we are going to have one nation under God, which we must, we have to have one religion. One nation under God and one religion under God.’”
Amanda Tyler reported that “Such language, emphasizing non-specific religious language in official settings, is not simply a misguided appeal to patriotism or national unity. Project Blitz, a project of the Congressional Prayer Caucus Foundation, explained the rationale behind a model bill for states to mandate the posting of ‘In God We Trust’ in public schools: ‘More than just a motto, though, it is our country’s foundation and an important part of our identity as Americans.’”
In a recent video posted by Right Wing Watch, white nationalist Vincent James O’Connor, better known online as Vincent James, took it one step further, saying: “We are the Christian Taliban. This is the era of Christian nationalism. Christian nationalism is on the rise and people are thirsty for it. They are hungry for this. And we are the Christian Taliban. And we will not stop until ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ is a reality and even worse than that.”
In another video, James argued that the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, did “not go far enough.” He added that it’s time to be "rolling back the 'rights' of women over the past 100 years" because "there is a true rise of Christian nationalism in this country."
James, who spoke at the so-called "Million Maga March" in November of 2020, is a right-wing YouTuber that has had two YouTube channels. According to Liberapedia, “In his videos, he argues that black and brown people growing in population will destroy the United States of America. He argues that because Black and Brown people commit more crimes than White People, that means we should be against immigration from non-white countries.”
YouTube Fandom reported (https://youtube.fandom.com/wiki/The_Red_Elephants#cite_note-1) that James’ The Red Elephants YouTube channel – which had over 300,000 subscribers -- was terminated for promoting hate speech. James, who denies being a white supremacist, has also been banned from Twitter, Tiktok and Facebook. YouTube Fandom pointed out that “James is anti-porn, pro-gun, anti diversity, anti-LGBT, anti-affirmative action, anti-feminism, anti-war, pro-life, anti-immigration, and a proud Trump supporter, supporting him in the 2016 and 2020 elections.”
Andrew Torba, the far-right Christian nationalist founder of Gab, also responded to the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision, posting a meme that read, “SAY GOODBYE TO YOUR ABORTIONS WHORES.” Right Wing Watch reported that “An image of Justice Brett Kavanaugh with red lasers coming out of his eyes accompanied it. Torba followed that misogynist celebration with this message: ‘The Christian takeover of our Christian country has begun.’”
“Next we need to ban the barbaric act of circumcision, which is also a Jewish sacrament that was imposed on our men outside of their will as mere babies,” Torba declared.
Right Wing Watch also reported that white nationalist Nick Fuentes took to Telegram writing, “Women gave us original sin and White Genocide.” “Fuentes—who believes women in the United States should be treated like they are under the Taliban—shared a message from Tyler Russell that said today’s ruling was not enough. ‘Time to go further right, Then even further,’ the message read. ‘We’re just getting started. Christian Nationalism is the future.’”
“God Wins,” Fuentes wrote. “We are going to ban abortion and open up the flood gates for God’s grace and our inevitable plan will be completed.”
Follow BuzzFlash on @twitter
Continue the conversation at the BuzzFlash Nation group on Facebook