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Holocaust Appropriation and Misinformation
When COVID started, the far-right mobilized. It did so quickly because it saw the disease both as an opportunity and a threat. This started in China, and while diseases are no longer named for the location where it starts, this did not stop the right. Or for that matter the previous president from using slurs attacking Asians. But there were other aspects to the story.
In the beginning, there was fear across the nation. This is a new disease, that is killing our elders left, right, and center. It forced economies to close. Not only in the United States but globally. Measures of public health, and saving lives took precedence. This global effort quickly became the objective of a disinformation-resistance campaign.
In certain spaces, such as 8Kun, /pol, or even Stormfront, it quickly took shape. COVID was not real. Or it was just the flu, or it was not as deadly or contagious as “they” told us. “They” is code for Jews. The antisemitism that is rife in these spaces quickly transformed a global pandemic into a conspiracy, where Jews became central, together with Asian-Americans.
Health orders included mask-wearing soon enough, which these people portrayed as a means of control. This was an authoritarian government trying to stamp out-freedom. It was George Soros and Bill Gates imposing their will on the world. Ultimately it…