Stay Curious

Recently, I came across a reference to LeavingMaga.org and decided to check it out. Their mission statement is as follows:

Empower others to leave MAGA and tell their stories.

Foster reconciliation with their friends and family.

Develop movement leaders to help others leave.

In addition to resources, their website shares the stories of people who have left the movement that they once thought was what the world, or at least they, themselves, needed. Instead of what, on another day, might have been my knee-jerk reaction (oh, so it’s newsworthy that you’re not a fucking idiot anymore?), I decided to get curious.

What would cause someone to ally themselves with such cruelty?

How could they overlook the many contradictions?

What was the final straw that made these people leave?

It bears mentioning that these testimonies are a very small sample of what is reportedly a larger number of people who have left the MAGA movement since 2021. These people are incredibly brave to expose themselves so thoroughly: both to the fury of the MAGA movement and the potential ridicule of those of us who have always abhorred everything the movement stands for. They share their mistakes, their shame and regret, their wish to atone for being a part of something that hurt others and our country. If we’re willing to listen, we can learn a lot.

While we can’t necessarily generalize from such a small sample, within this sample there were a number of commonalities that, for me at least, were illuminating. Blue collar backgrounds and fundamentalist religion were the norm, although there were also testimonies from business owners, disabled people, and children of immigrants. Almost to a person, they cited their information diet as being restricted. Most commonly mentioned were Fox, Newsmax, OAN, Candace Owens, Ben Shapiro, Charlie Kirk, and Alex Jones.

As for what attracted them to MAGA, a few were captivated by conspiracy theories in general and QAnon in particular, which led directly to MAGA (the idea being that Trump was going to save the day by stopping all the pedophiles that were trafficking children in Wayfair containers and drinking their blood in the basement of a pizza parlor). A few others were influenced by their mentors who, no surprise, were older, wealthy white men. A couple were in the grip of addiction and spiraling. More than a few were fed up with the two-party system seeming like two sides of the same bad coin, and saw Trump as a breath of fresh air, someone who was “just like them” who also happened to be a savvy businessman who would fix things. A few mentioned that with MAGA they felt a strong sense of community and belonging, something that had previously been lacking in their lives.

A striking majority mentioned that, while they had ideological disagreements along the way (the treatment of immigrants), or disapproval and disappointment at things Trump did (mocking a disabled reporter, objectifying and disrespecting women), they were able to rationalize these things because they were true believers (a hallmark of a cult, but that’s beyond the scope of this post). Even the insurrection on January 6^th was accepted by some as a reasonable protest of a stolen election.

The top two “last straws” for this sample were the way Covid was handled by Trump and the insurrection. Other reasons for finally leaving included Project 2025 (and especially its position on immigration and climate change), the worship of Trump as of a deity, the claim that the 2022 mid-terms were also stolen, Ukraine policy, and the response to the Uvalde massacre.

There will always be people associated with MAGA who know exactly what they’re doing, who either enjoy the cruelty or are willing to overlook it in order to preserve their privilege. I can’t imagine ever having an ounce of sympathy for them and eagerly await the arrival of their karma. But the people who were systematically duped into worshipping the very people that want to oppress or eradicate them? I think that they deserve our compassion and our forgiveness, whether or not they’ve reconsidered. More importantly, I believe that those of us who haven’t been brainwashed could be instrumental in helping to deprogram those who have. While I have no expertise in this area, it seems pretty clear that disseminating factual, unbiased information is a crucial first step.

We’re inundated daily with news (even of the unbiased variety) that tempts us to give up hope. I’m trying so hard to resist that, and one of the ways to do that might be to note little changes in the tide. Changes that we can help to facilitate by staying curious rather than judging. By educating rather than ridiculing. I’m starting to think that my anger is righteous but it’s not helping; that maybe by painting everyone involved with the same brush I’m preventing understanding and the potential for change. So I’ve resolved that, as in other parts of my life, I’m going to try to stay curious.

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Thanks for reading. Please share any ideas for winning the hearts and minds of MAGA members who have been duped.

Just before publication, a friend sent me this podcast from Red Wine & Blue (who describe themselves as diverse suburban women working together to defeat extremism). Fascinating look at many of the issues involved.  "I left MAGA" - Red Wine & Blue

GOOD THINGS

Superman. Good versus evil (with obvious parallels to our current sitch, which is why it’s being denigrated as “woke” by MAGA) with lots of humor and fun. Highly recommend.

My Friends, by Fredrik Backman. From the author of A Man Called Ove, another gem. I’ve not found an author who even approaches his distinct blend of humor, quirkiness, and deep insight into both the sadness and beauty of the human condition.

A working vacay. Next week I’ll be leaving for a long overdue fix of old friends and New England. I’ll spend the first half in New Hampshire editing the first draft of my upcoming book, then after a day getting reacquainted with Boston I’ll spend the second half on Cape Cod, my happy place. So, no post next week, next post will be on August 7^th.