Zeskind, a recipient of a MacArthur genius grant, died in April at 75. He documented his view with meticulous detail in his many writings.
Zeskind was memorialized on Nov. 9 at a synagogue near his longtime home of Kansas City. His life’s work was honored with a symposium to discuss the rise of white nationalism, the threat it poses to democracy, and what can be done about it.
Researchers flew and drove from around the nation to attend. Many of the attendees have been instrumental in the decades-long work to chronicle these extremist movements, from the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan to neo-Nazis, Christian patriot groups, insurrectionists, and those more familiar to the public, like the Proud Boys.
Zeskind was a stalwart among them, a reporter’s go-to expert on domestic and global extremism. He founded the Institute for Research & Education on Human Rights.
Zeskind also predicted the challenges now undeniably facing the GOP.
It shouldn’t be difficult to disavow a former cable news host who provided a welcoming platform to an antisemite and white nationalist. But Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts stumbled to do so.
Roberts issued a milquetoast reply to criticisms for his failure to distance the Heritage Foundation from Tucker Carlson. Carlson, on his podcast, recently hosted Nick Fuentes, a Holocaust denier, sexist, and racist. Carlson, Roberts insisted, would remain a friend to the foundation.
Since his ousting from cable news, Carlson has devolved into embracing extremists, including conspiracy theorists like Alex Jones and now Fuentes.
Fuentes, during Carlson’s podcast, slammed “organized Jewry in America” and boasted of his adoration of Joseph Stalin.
Fuentes is a 27-year-old influencer whose megaphone just grew substantially given the reach of Carlson’s podcast. Fuentes participated in the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, where participants marched with torches and chanted “blood and soil,” a Nazi rallying cry.
Fuentes was also at the 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol which was overtaken by Trump supporters, who assaulted law enforcement and erected gallows intended for then-Vice President Mike Pence.
Such mainstreaming of blatant racism was Zeskind’s wheelhouse, which he documented in his 2009 book titled, “Blood and Politics: The History of White Nationalism from the Margins to the Mainstream.”
The good news is that others reacted with disgust at how Roberts managed the Carlson interview. Heritage staffers also resigned, and a handful of Republicans are also beginning to speak out, notably Texas Sen. Ted Cruz who recently addressed the Federalists Society at its National Washington Lawyers Association.
Cruz nailed the GOP’s dilemma in his remarks, reportedly asking those gathered if they were willing to say Tucker’s name. “Now I can tell you, my colleagues, almost to a person, think what is happening is horrifying,” Cruz said of Carlson’s outreach to Fuentes. “But a great many of them are frightened, because he has one hell of a big megaphone.”
Some see the turmoil within the Heritage Foundation as a public skirmish that will become a battle within MAGA. Consider the mainstreaming of the Great Replacement theory, which is the idea that Black people, Latinos and Asians are a stealth force to be feared. These minority groups, the conspiracy theory goes, are plotting to destroy America and overtake white people. Jewish people are usually blamed for this fantasy as controlling instigators.
The theory can seep into what might start out as healthy discussions about immigration policies and law, or assessments of diversity initiatives applied in college admissions or business settings.
False remarks about crime committed by people of color become woven into conspiracy theories, to build a fear of immigrants. Eugenics, the loony belief in a mythical purity of the white race, usually plays a role, as well as antisemitism.
Zeskind documented such messaging. He understood the impact of the Internet on lone wolf extremists who could gather online and organize. He knew how far-right groups could splinter and form anew.
He monitored how talking points could be coded and made palatable to the unaware. He knew history and the fact that some themes – hatred of the Jewish people, LGBTQ people, and immigrants recirculate, often intensified by charismatic figures.
The danger, Zeskind long cautioned, is when these attitudes go mainstream. He feared extremist ideologies would embed themselves into mainstream political messaging. They could then codify into policy and even be funded by Congress.
There’s one more factor that Zeskind also believed in fervently: the ability of good people, of varying faiths and stations in life, to stand up to hate. They need to do so again and immediately, especially conservatives. Democrats and Independents shouldn’t hesitate to join in, to applaud and stand with voices like Cruz.
Doing so would be a fantastic way to honor Zeskind’s memory and life’s work.
Mary Sanchez is a nationally syndicated columnist with the Tribune Content Agency.
MIKE LUCKOVICH