Racial resentment and white extremism in America

Guests: Jane Coaston, Jonathan Metzl

Over the weekend, President Trump retweeted and amplified the voices of white supremacists who are upset that some of their more prominent figures were deplatformed on social media. Trump has joined in their cause claiming it’s an effort by big tech to suppress conservative voices. This controversy is the latest flashpoint to highlight racial tension in modern America. White racial resentment is often attributed to a portion of Trump’s electoral victory, and white supremacist extremism is on the rise as a result of these resentments. In fact, the FBI director recently warned Congress that violence by white nationalist groups is a “persistent and pervasive threat.” Today on the show, we’re going to talk about whiteness in modern America – why whites feel so aggrieved, the effect this has on politics, and how these sentiments lead to racist extremism and violence. Joining us are JANE COASTON, who reports on the far right for Vox, and Vanderbilt University professor of sociology and psychiatry, JONATHAN METZL, author of Dying of Whiteness.