Thigh-High Politics is an op-ed column by Teen Vogue writer Lauren Duca that breaks down the news, provides resources for the resistance, and just generally refuses to accept toxic nonsense.
Earlier this week, Kathy Griffin released a mind-numbingly stupid video in which she stares wide-eyed into the camera, holding a gruesome mold that resembled Donald Trump’s severed head. The prop was dripping with blood, and the Internet smelled it almost immediately.
Backlash was exactly what Griffin was aiming for — and it certainly wasn’t unjustified — but there was something inauthentic about the intensity of the response. The stunt was quickly glommed in with “the left,” which contributed to the tribalism of public condemnation from both sides. Conservatives clutched their pearls in unison, while mainstream media figures like CNN’s Jake Tapper and Anderson Cooper clarified their personal disturbance as if participating in a roll call. The posturing of righteous indignation was not only the safest possible reaction, but something of an obligation. This outrage performance is an unnerving handicap on the productivity of public discourse and further evidence of our mounting inability to process relativity in a moment where the cultural force of shame appears to be malfunctioning. Or, in other words: Where the hell is the line if Donald Trump gets to be president?
Trump rose to political prominence with his inherently bigoted stance on Obama birtherism and was elected despite a rich history of racist housing policy and sexual assault allegations. On the 2016 campaign trail, he called Mexicans rapists, took aim at the families of war heroes, and said he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue without losing voters. Then he won the election.
The simple fact that Trump won the election marked a condonation of his rap sheet, which continues to destabilize our propensity for shock. And while we discussed the merits of Kathy Griffin trying too hard to get attention, Trump pulled out of the Paris agreement, effectively canceling the United States’s commitment to the preservation of the planet. If this course goes uncorrected, environmental disasters will increase, and our children and grandchildren will be forced to grapple with unimaginably harsh daily conditions. But please, keep dragging Kathy Griffin on Twitter.
This isn’t about whether what Griffin did was really so bad, but our collective inability to prioritize a system of shared values. Holding up the decapitated head of the president is deeply disturbing, but so was Trump’s mocking of a disabled reporter and bragging about sexually assaulting women on the Access Hollywood tapes. We’re all well aware that Trump’s list of unforgivable infractions is longer than a Costco receipt, and yet he occupies our highest office, supremely unscathed. Meanwhile, the factionalized mobs slice through even the most irrelevant public figures with brute force. In both conservative condemnation and progressive purity checking, the standards apply to everyone except the man who ought to be held up as the highest example. We’re living in an outrage culture without any sort of enforceable set point.
Less than 24 hours after the stunt, Griffin admitted to her mistake. "I'm a comic. I cross the line. I move the line, then I cross it,” she said in an apology video. “I went way too far.” But, again, where is the line exactly? It has become increasingly unclear what is unacceptable and who decides as much.
In this case, the decision fell to corporate America. Griffin lost her New Year’s Eve gig, much like Trump’s Access Hollywood accomplice, Billy Bush, lost his job at the Today show because of his role in the recording. Advertisers are becoming increasingly politicized, and companies, media and otherwise, are unwilling to bear the burden of risk. The problem is that the calculus that informs those decisions has been thrown completely out of whack. When Trump was elected, it seemed that the impossible success of his shamelessness had ushered in a post-shame moment. And it did, but only for him.
Ours is an era of unbalanced pitchforking in which one can be shamed out of CNN and NBC, but not the Oval Office. And we are all somewhat complicit. This noxious phenomenon is a long way from fixing, but each of us can be more thoughtful about our participation. When the next opportunity for outrage emerges, check in with your genuine reaction before diving headfirst into the bouncy house of public shame. You know, do you, but investigating Russian collusion, safeguarding American democracy, and protecting the future of the earth are just a few items of concern that might be more pressing than a comedian doing a dumb thing. Be mindful to focus your energy on issues of true significance and avoid performing emotions for the sake of likes and retweets. When each day presents a fresh cornucopia of reasons to be terrified for the future of this country, there really is no need to fake it.
Things to Read:
On Thursday, Donald Trump announced that the U.S. will withdraw from the Paris agreement and the results will be devastating for anyone who cares about the future of the earth. Read this New York Times explainer on the implications of the decision.
Last week, it was revealed that Jared Kushner is a person of interest in the FBI’s Russia probe. Head over to Time for their cover story unpacking how the president’s son-in-law catapulted himself into this potentially ruinous predicament.
Teen Vogue’s very own Ella Ceron spoke to Chelsea Clinton about her new book, She Persisted, and the women who have inspired her. Check out the full interview here.
Things to Do:
Happy Pride to every last member of the LGBTQ community, in the closet or out. You are loved and supported! Here are 10 organizations you might consider donating to in honor of this special month.
June is also Immigrant Heritage Month. Head over to iamanimmigrant.com to pledge your support and maybe pick up a T-shirt or two.
See if there are any protests around the issues that matter to you. If not, consider organizing a demonstration of your own.
Related: Trump Withdraws U.S. From Paris Agreement: Here's What It Means
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