Trump has called some illegal immigrants “animals” and today said Democrats want them to “infest” our country. It’s an effort to appeal to the bigots that are a large part of his base.
Here are some tweets on Trump’s disgusting language.
Important: In the past Trump has talked about "crime infested" areas. Today is the first time he's talked about PEOPLE as an infestation, saying Dems want illegal immigrants to "infest our country, like MS-13."
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) June 19, 2018
Dear @realDonaldTrump: Like your grandfather, my parents infested America. As their son with yellow skin, I now get to vote against your harmful policies. And after you leave due to either losing reelection or impeachment, I will still be here reversing your shit.
Cheers. https://t.co/vN4fJfp4h9
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) June 19, 2018
As Trump uses words like "infest, animals and shithole countries" to talk immigration, worth remembering this story as language as a weapon in the Trump era immigration debates: https://t.co/jcUSfJqOfx
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) June 19, 2018
And folks who cry foul when the media points this out are willfully ignoring a very obvious patternhttps://t.co/tCrnjPTn6w
— Alex Burns (@alexburnsNYT) June 19, 2018
Trump’s statement that immigrants will “infest our Country” probably sounds better in the original German. https://t.co/k7FBgBkCHQ
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) June 19, 2018
1/2 This is a usage point I’ve actually studied over the years.
There are virtually no cases of “infest” being used in English in a neutral way. Almost always applied to vermin, pests, disease. See context notes from Am Heritage Dic: https://t.co/nQvQnkGvEG https://t.co/mitj7lI2jg— James Fallows (@JamesFallows) June 19, 2018
2/2 Of the 125,000+ words in ‘Our Towns,’ exactly two are “infest.” One refers to roaches that ate up a school’s garden; another, to an invasive plant now choking the surface of Caddo Lake, TX-LA.
Applying it to people is an undeniable tell, like “shiftless.”
— James Fallows (@JamesFallows) June 19, 2018
Also – insects infest. This public language about immigrants from a US president after, say, 1970, is remarkable. https://t.co/xRhAUjqo5P
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) June 19, 2018
"Characterizing people as vermin has historically been a precursor to murder and genocide." https://t.co/p9setYAijA
— Michael Calderone (@mlcalderone) June 19, 2018
Trump's tweet this AM about how immigrants will "infest our Country" speaks to this point. The family separation policy is unpopular, and has lukewarm support even among his base, so he turns up the racial anxiety dial several notches.
— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) June 19, 2018
Words like “infest,” even when you sprinkle in the MS-13 red herring, conjure thoughts of extermination. This is evil and dangerous. https://t.co/HB58AJlcns
— Marc Lamont Hill (@marclamonthill) June 19, 2018
Disturbingly apt: “ethnopartisanship” https://t.co/VIT6HKShpZ
— Brendan Nyhan (@BrendanNyhan) June 19, 2018
Language historically associated with de-humanization, from the head of govt, actually deserves note — in the context (which I and others have fully engaged in) of policy outrages that need to be opposed and reversed.
— James Fallows (@JamesFallows) June 19, 2018
Trump refers to deportees as "animals":
History and psychological science show that when we refer to people as “animals,” it flips a mental switch in our minds. It allows us to deny empathy to other people, makes us feel numb to their pain. https://t.co/5MjLlMsnYG
via @voxdotcom— Michiko Kakutani (@michikokakutani) June 18, 2018
update:
— Zerlina Maxwell (@ZerlinaMaxwell) June 21, 2018
"Infest," "breeding," "violent," "shithole countries": The language Trump uses when he talks about immigrants. https://t.co/VDqaJSlymn
— Lisa Tozzi (@lisatozzi) June 19, 2018
Sad! 