Controversial sports journalist Jason Whitlock raised some eyebrows during his January 20 appearance on the Tucker Carlson Tonight show on Fox News when he likened the Black Lives Matter movement and Antifa to KKK, claiming they’re no different from the White Supremacist hate group.
During the interview, the 53-year-old claimed the BLM were more of like the Democratic Party’s “enforcement arm.”
“Well, I compare Black Lives Matter to the KKK. I really do,” he said. “And some people don’t understand it, but if you go back to the 1860s, after the Emancipation Proclamation, the KKK was started, and it was the enforcement arm of the Democratic Party. And what’s the enforcement arm of the Democratic Party right now? Black Lives Matter and Antifa. They will come to your home and violate your home, try to intimidate the people in your home if they disagree with you politically.”
The Black Lives Matter movement was birthed on social media in 2013 following the acquittal of George Zimmerman – the White man who fatally shot Black and unarmed 17-year-old high school student, Trayvon Martin, the year prior. Since its formation, the organization has held largely peaceful anti-racism and anti-police brutality protests against Blacks and other people of color. Whitlock, however, said they propagate negative values.
“Black Lives Matter [is] a Marxist organization. Marxism is hostile toward religion; that’s why I’m glad you went there today. These are atheist values being expressed from our leaders, demonizing individual citizens here in America, branding them as white supremacists because they decided, because we disagree with their opinion about something. This is lunacy, and it’s dangerous.”
Whitlock doubled down on his stance in another email he sent to the IndyStar, calling the movement a “cleverly marketed slogan that provides cover for extremists to undermine racial progress and bully American citizens to support Democrat politicians.”
“Despite the sweet-sounding name, Black Lives Matter acts as a racial divider, no different from the KKK,” he said.
He also compared how similar the KKK’s nightly shenanigans was similar to the Black Lives Matter movement’s activities, claiming the latter also uses violence and stokes intimidation.
“Black Lives Matter and Antifa protests have primarily terrorized and destroyed property in (B)lack communities at night,” he said. “BLM and Antifa have attempted to intimidate white Republicans. BLM protests have been violent and caused the assassination of law enforcement officers and other citizens.”
A professor and historian at the University of Notre Dame, Richard Pierce, however, labeled his comments as “provocative, inflammatory screed”, telling the IndyStar he did not want to delve too deep into proving why Whitlock is wrong.
“Nonetheless, I will say this. The KKK rioters commonly wore hoods to camouflage their identity and mimicked confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest’s marauding practices honed during the Civil War. Their very anonymity added to their intimidation,” Pierce said. “Protesters, prior to COVID-19 safeguard measures, were mostly unmasked. I’ve never seen a hooded Black Lives Matter protester.”
Despite the objections, however, an adamant Whitlock shared a follow-up op-ed further justifying his sentiments.
