In a 20-minute video, Reverend Rob Schenck discusses the dangers of harsh, politically incorrect rhetoric by political and religious leaders speaking in public. At present, many conservatives and populists believe that political correctness has been a detriment to America and its society. In essence, Schenck is arguing the opposite. He backs his argument up with real world examples of what he is talking about. Schenck, an Evangelical Minister, wrote My Words Led to Violence. Now Trump's are too for Time magazine (August 6, 2019).
Schenck's harsh anti-abortion rhetoric helped dehumanize pro-abortion people, calling doctors who perform abortions murderers, and other names. That was his attempt to dehumanize the people he bitterly opposed and morally condemned. 1:35 He considered pro-abortion people to be morally defective and not worthy of the same respect as an anti-abortion person. 11:10
In an article for Time magazine Schenck wrote: "As a national anti-abortion leader for more than 30 years, I routinely used inflammatory language from the podium. At rallies for the activist anti-abortion organization Operation Rescue, I depicted doctors who performed abortions as murderers, callous profiteers in misery, monsters and even pigs."
After one doctor that Schenck rhetorically attacked in public was murdered, Schenck reflected on what role he had in fomenting the killing. He finally came to believe that humanity was God's greatest gift and all people are human and all deserve the same dignity and respect.12:50 Now, his message is one of being careful about not using harsh political rhetoric in public. He has come to believe that some people in an audience look for permission in the words of political speakers on a powerful speaking platform. 15:10 Schenck points out that the president has the most powerful stage in the world and he must understand that his words can foment violence. Some people will take from harsh political rhetoric permission to "act on their most hideous impulses," regardless of whether the speaker intended such permission or not. 16:05 Once a person is dehumanized, someone inevitably will go out and hunt them down and unleash their murderous impulses.
Schenck argues that the president can and must stop the harsh rhetoric because sooner or later, someone innocent will be murdered by a listener who heard permission to kill in the president's words, again, regardless of whether permission was intended or not.
Some of what Schenck refers to has already happened. Trump's harsh rhetoric has stirred some people to try to murder people in groups that the president has vilified and dehumanized. Only intervention by police prevented the murders that Trump has authorized by his immoral, politically incorrect rhetoric. For example, a California man was arrested and charged with making threatening calls to Boston Globe journalists after Trump's attacks on the press: "A California man was charged Thursday with threatening to shoot and kill Boston Globe journalists, calling them “the enemy of the people,” in response to the newspaper’s nationwide editorial campaign denouncing President Trump’s political attacks against the press."
As far as Evangelical support for the president, Schenck sees Evangelicals supporting Trump as having "made a deal with the devil", asserting that "we've sold our principles for political gain." 17:15 He sees the situation as trading respect for human life for degrading of human life. 17:35 In his opinion, Evangelical support for Trump amounts to "a bid for political power." 18:15
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