State Rep. Josh Schriver, a Republican in Michigan, lost staff and his committee assignments after posting a map of the world showing Black people overwhelming White people with the caption "The great replacement!" This conspiracy theory is popular among antisemites, racists and other far-right ne'er-do-wells who are doubtless pleased to count another GOP lawmaker among their ranks.
Schriver, who represents portions of Oakland and Macomb counties, can vote on the House floor. … A message seeking comment from Schriver wasn't immediately returned. He defended his social media post last week.
"I'm opposed to racists, race baiters and victim politics," Schriver told The Detroit News. "What I find strange is the agenda to demoralize and reduce the white portion of our population."
Michigan Live on the context:
The "great replacement" is a far-right racist conspiracy theory claiming there is an concerted effort to diminish the influence of white Americans through demographic shifts, particularly via illegal immigration. Jewish Americans are often cast by proponents in an organizing role.
The theory has motivated multiple mass shooters. White nationalists marching at the 2017 "unite the right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia chanted "You will not replace us!" and "Jews will not replace us!"
The Daily Beast points out that he loves the attention this is getting him and is took the opportunity to double-down.
On Wednesday, Schriver issued an official statement on Michigan House of Representatives letterhead, referring to a "racist plan to replace Whites with non-Whites through illegal immigration to irreversibly warp America's demographics, voting citizens, and national identity to keep power in the hands of a godless regime."
"There is an anti-White agenda," he later tweeted. "No one is 'racist' for talking about it." … Meanwhile, outside of the state Capitol, someone rented a truck with a billboard supporting Schriver and warning "The invaders are coming!" under a photo of a throng of people. It's unclear who had commissioned the display.
The precipice he's holding his breath at is giving up that whole "I'm not racist, Blacks are racist against Whites" thing. The switch from play to action. And when someone like him does it, many of us will be extremely uncomfortable reporting it, because it's not the role we want them to play in our stories. It'll get to the point where they'll be explicitly disavowing the euphemistic language used to describe their open, proudly-labeled racism and we will just antsily find new terms so we don't have to consciously retriangulate ourselves to some new, perfectly impartial Center we hadn't banked on.
Previously: Musk chimes in support of racist tweets
