Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) leaned into the culture war Tuesday morning when she published an op-ed with Fox News online condemning the cancel culture that has gained so much steam in recent months.
In a piece titled, “Here’s how to stop cancel-culture mob, violent anarchists from remaking our country,” Blackburn called on all Americans to fight the culture war the left has waged in their destruction of statues, violent protests, and removal of history. By “punching through the rhetoric” and reminding fellow Americans what they stand for, she said the right can take back the nation they used to know and still love.
Blackburn provided the illuminating example of the left’s strategy of recent cancellation of a Chattanooga, Tennessee restaurant, Shuford’s Smokehouse. The left wing mob, labeled as “resistance activists,” came for the establishment in June, deeming them unworthy of any business because they fulfilled an order that would be delivered to participants at a pro-police rally. Their efforts were successful — as they have been with so many real people and groups — ruining Shuford’s Smokehouse in one fell swoop.
Shuford’s isn’t alone. The so-called ‘resistance’ decided on an acceptably woke, conveniently fluid narrative long before George Floyd’s brutal murder sent police reform protesters pouring into the streets of Nashville, Washington, D.C., Portland and Chicago; and now, they’ve weaponized those moving goalposts against anyone who steps out of line.
The op-ed came out the same day the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on the Constitution is set to hear how Americans are protecting their First Amendment rights during this time.
“Make no mistake — this is nothing less than an attempt to extort compliance from the American people,” Blackburn writes. “The left wants you to know that all of this violence and unrest is on you. But, if you fall in line, we will go away. If you comply with our demands, we will refrain from confiscating your livelihood.”
Beyond what Blackburn and other Republicans can do in Washington, the job is too big for national leadership to tackle alone. The Tennessee senator not only called on everyday Americans, but specifically local law enforcement and local government. Demanding local leadership stand strong against acts of violence, Blackburn said every American must actively strive to unite their communities.
“This is not a problem Washington can single-handedly solve. The radical left is attacking not only the spirit of the First Amendment, but our very sense of unity, and the spoils of this brewing war will be the right to re-mold the American identity.”
Blackburn’s powerful message could serve as comfort for conservatives who feel scared and abandoned by politicians during the constant destruction and outright rejection of American ideals displayed across the same news platform this summer.
The senator’s call to action may also provide a push for those who have felt helpless or confused about their role throughout all of this. She assured Americans of the urgency to take action.
“An America under siege by the left’s political mob, hell-bent on remaking the world’s shining city on a hill in their own image. It’s the very thing our Constitution is meant to protect against.”