Why I Support the Harper’s Letter and Its Signers

Conversation and Debate is Better than Dehumanization and Suppression of Speech

As a lifelong Democrat who has been fighting on what I thought was the right side I have never been so disappointed with how things have evolved than the reaction to this letter. While the critics of it do not represent “the Democrats” or “The Left,” they represent the loudest voices, which in turn seem to be setting the tone of how people should be reacting to what amounts to a plea for more compassion, less judgment, open hearts and open minds.

It was met with resistance for two reasons. The first, in our ongoing crippling partisanship we can cede nothing to Trump. Since Trump has already targeted the “radical left” and “cancel culture” it would seem that any opposition to it coming from our side is somehow an admission that Trump was right. That is an odd position to take but if you’re someone who has not been ruminating on the ongoing disaster on the left, you might be inclined to revert to “all things Trump are bad.” But this has nothing to do with Trump. It has nothing to do with the right, in fact. It is based on what many are noticing but not saying. It is born out of fear of totalitarian conformity of thought growing on the left as we head into an election year. It is driven by the key factors of a fascist state: dehumanization of those who…