As the political divide in America continues to widen and deepen with opposition to President Donald J. Trump rising to unprecedented levels, we have begun to witness a dramatic increase in violent confrontations between Alt-Left opponents and conservatives who back him.
What is also unprecedented are Left-wingers’ claims that any violence they commit against Americans who simply disagree with their political opinions and agenda is justified.
In times past, the vast majority of Americans viewed any violence committed on behalf of any political ideology to be inappropriate — and for the most part, a majority of us still believe that. But we’re definitely seeing a rise in the feeling among Alt-Left groups like Antifa, Black Lives Matter, and “Occupy Wall Street” that use of violence is okay against conservative opponents because their opinions have been arbitrarily deemed unworthy and “dangerous.”
As noted by The College Fix, one case that sums this up perfectly involves a teacher in Berkeley, Calif., who pummeled a white nationalist last year and was just arrested recently on assault charges relating to that attack. The teacher, Yvette Felarca, head of By Any Means Necessary, claims that “standing up to fascism is not a crime” — even when you’re behaving just like a fascist in doing so.
Felarca said at her arraignment hearing: “Standing up against … the rise of Nazism and fascism in this country is not a crime… We have the right to defend ourselves.”
Only, in America there is a little constitutional right we like to refer to as “the First Amendment,” guaranteeing a little concept we call “freedom of speech” — which protects all speech, even vile, disgusting speech you may not agree with. (Related: Beware the slippery slope of banning web domains for “hate speech” … this could all lead to content totalitarianism and the radicalization of those who are censored.)
What’s more, attacking someone you disagree with politically isn’t “defending” yourself; it’s attacking someone. Big difference.
As The College Fix noted, Felarca was videoed in June of last year punching a man “in the stomach repeatedly, before throwing him to the ground.” There were others who joined in the attack, the website noted, but they could not be identified by police.
Felarca, who teaches in the Berkeley Unified School District, was placed on paid leave about a year ago, but was reinstated six weeks later. Incredibly, she sued her employer for back pay after she was docked for using sick days so she could attend political rallies to protest — and to attack people, apparently.
The College Fix went on to point out that Felarca’s insistence that her use of violence against those in which she disagrees is consistent. The Huffington Post reported that around the time of her alleged assault, she said, “They [white nationalists] are organizing to attack and kill us. So we have a right to self-defense… That is why we have to shut them down by any means necessary.”
Of course, she has offered no proof that we have seen proving that “white nationalists” are actually “organizing” to “kill” her or anyone else like her. Besides, our legal system does not recognize or legitimize pre-emptive attacks as a means of “self-defense.”
Felarca’s next scheduled court date is Oct. 4. For now, she will be returning to her teaching position — yes, she’s in charge of ‘educating’ young, impressionable minds — when students return this month to class. Under the school district’s rules, she can’t be fired unless she is convicted of a felony.
The Alt-Left is declaring that it is above the law and the rules of civil society, and this woman is the poster child of their arrogance.
You may not like what someone has to say, but if they’re really not trying to do anything other than speak their mind, you don’t have the right to preemptively attack them, either, then claim that you’re acting in “self-defense.”
What an absurdity. But clearly, this is the thought process of the modern American Left. They really believe they have some inherent right to make the rules for society that all of us must accept and obey, and that we should be attacked if we disagree.
J.D. Heyes is a senior writer for NaturalNews.com and NewsTarget.com, as well as editor of The National Sentinel.
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