The Washington Post has a new article proclaiming how much the alt-right just loooooooooooves Taylor Swift.
Taylor Swift is not a white supremacist. She doesn’t identify as a neo-Nazi, and there is no evidence to suggest that, behind closed doors, she might.
That hasn’t stopped some white supremacists from the “alt-right,” a fringe group of the movement that often uses humor and message boards like 4chan to spread its ideology, from reportedly choosing her — ironically or not remains unclear — as an icon for their movement. In much the same way Cher or Barbra Streisand can be seen as “gay icons,” a series of Internet memes, articles and message board posts have dubbed Swift an “Aryan goddess.”
This is not a new story. Back in 2016 Slate wrote:
It may have started as a meme, but now actual white supremacists count themselves as fans of Swift, and some of them insist that she shares their beliefs. This is not an association the pop star has courted, but if you read her public profile selectively, there are a few elements it’s easy to see why the alt-right might find appealing: She’s never revealed her political beliefs in public, and because she started as a country singer, some people think that qualifies as conservative. And conservative, as we all know, is just a hop, skip, and a jump from Nazi.
And in 2013, Andre Anglin, from the white supremacist blog the Daily Stormer, had this to say about his people’s fascination with Tay-Tay:
“Firstly, Taylor Swift is a pure Aryan goddess, like something out of classical Greek poetry. Athena reborn. That’s the most important thing. It is also an established fact that Taylor Swift is secretly a Nazi and is simply waiting for the time when Donald Trump makes it safe for her to come out and announce her Aryan agenda to the world. Probably, she will be betrothed to Trump’s son, and they will be crowned American royalty.” (Swift is notoriously private about her political leanings, although, after Obama was elected, she told Rolling Stone, “I’ve never seen this country so happy about a political decision in my entire time of being alive. I’m so glad this was my first election.”)
Anglin is committed to Swift becoming the figurehead in the coming white supremacist uprising, saying:
“The entire alt-right patiently awaits the day when we can lay down our swords and kneel before her throne, as she commands us to go forth and slaughter the subhuman enemies of the Aryan race.”
The Daily Stormer has also become home to several pages of articles praising Swift that bear titles like “Taylor Swift, Avatar of European Imperialism,” “Aryan Goddess Taylor Swift: Nazi Avatar of the White European People” and “Aryan Goddess Taylor Swift Accused of Racism for Behaving Like an Ape in a Music Video.”
And: Did She Nazi the Swastika? (here’s the picture in question)
(Top photo: Pacific Coast News)
