An Open Letter to the Salt Lake Tribune Regarding #DezNat

posted on 2/6/2021 by Charles R. Bernard

To the Editors of the Salt Lake Tribune,

When I saw in my podcast feed that Mormon Land would be covering so-called “#DezNat” extremists, I tuned in with great interest. I study (and often write about) cultic movements, far right ideology, and online extremism, so naturally #DezNat is a phenomenon I became aware of a few years ago. It currently exists at the confluence of many of the powerful forces that drive American politics in 2021.

 

To talk about the issue, you invited a guest – one Mary Ann Clements of the Mormon blog Wheat and Tares – who has written sporadically about issues related to #DezNat in the past. She has penned one post on white supremacy in online Mormonism, one on far-right ideologies at BYU, a solitary post about Donald Trump, and one particularly inventive piece on federal lands that portrayed the federal government as the equivalent of a greedy slumlord squeezing innocent ranchers. In her lone post dedicated to #DezNat she focuses on the historical roots of Mormon violence in a tone informed more by apologetics than alarm. She does not mention the Poway Massacre, the Tree of Life Synagogue Shooting, the Christchurch Massacre, or any of the other horrific acts of violence that have been the direct consequence of “trolling” and “sh*tposting.”

 

If Clements would like an example of radical right-wing praxis more closely related to #DezNat, I would direct her attention to the January 6^th Insurrection, a mob attack on our nation’s capitol that resulted in the deaths of capitol police and civilian participants alike. One of the insurrectionists was dressed as Captain Moroni. Another participant – the one who clambered over a balcony in his zeal to “get” our elected representatives – is a returned missionary from Idaho. Or perhaps she could have addressed the white supremacist propaganda that appeared on the University of Utah campus – multiple times! - courtesy of Identity Europa, a very online organization that champions the same racist ideology – “nationalism,” “white separatism,” call it whatever you want – that #DezNat does.

 

I found the speed with which Clements moved the conversation’s goalposts to be disorienting. 8 minutes into your program, she refers to “accusations of racism” against #DezNat, and says she is “here to clear up that misconception.” She alludes to criticism “from a progressive standpoint,” and says that critics “target them as racist” (emphasis mine). Twelve minutes into the program, she categorizes #DezNat’s political ideology as “more on the conservative side.”

 

Keep in mind that Clements calls #DezNat is “more on the conservative side” a mere forty seconds before we get the first use of the word “separatist.” By 13:20 into the broadcast, Clements refers to their beliefs as “theocratic fascism,” and acknowledges that “when you use the fasces [as a symbol], it’s gonna make you look, like, fascist.” Needless to say, it is grotesque to describe an organization bent on white supremacy and theocratic fascism – one which even Clements admits considers ISIS a template for success -as “on the conservative side. “

Seven minutes into the broadcast, Clements frames #DezNat as a response to attackers, a defensive strike in which normally good-natured Mormons say (and I quote) “We’re just gonna troll ya! We’re gonna protect our people!” Her tone is one of amusement. I do not think this is the appropriate response to an anti-gay, anti-trans, white supremacist troll brigade, one that routinely engages in violent and terroristic threats. They are the Mormon answer to 8kun: congratulations on the Salt Lake Tribune and Mormon Land helping to mainstream their beliefs.

 

Clements bragged about her research skills on your show and claimed to be “really good at finding things online.” I would have assumed, given her alleged acumen, that Clements would have encountered Tarpley Hitt’s piece on #DezNat for the Daily Beast, which featured the perspectives of some very frightened members of the communities targeted by them. Since Clements is so good at research, I’m surprised she didn’t touch on any pertinent background information, either on her blog or on your show.  She could, should she choose, read about fascism’s longstanding relationship with irony. Combat journalist and antifascist author and podcaster Robert Evans has done particularly good work on this subject, should she wish to gain some insight. She could also read the excellent book Culture Warlords by Talia Lavin, or any number of other texts on the subject.

 

It is, perhaps, not surprising that Mormon Land’s coverage of #DezNat did such an abysmal job of reflecting the group’s beliefs or the threat they pose. The Tribune’s Jan. 31, 2021 article – the one that was penned by none other than Tribune religion editor and Mormon Land co-host Peggy Fletcher-Stack – had a similarly apologetic tone. The article’s headline is unforgivable. It describes #DezNat as “defending the LDS Church” – tell me, from whom or what is #DezNat “defending the Church?” People with different opinions? Gay folks trying to simply live their lives without interfering with – or interference from – their neighbors?

 

I am a member of a religious minority. In the age of QAnon, armed insurrection, and Captain Moroni, members of my faith (among others) are extremely likely to be targeted by fascist violence, should the poisonous seeds of ethno-religious nationalism find purchase in Utah’s soil. I am extremely disappointed by the coverage this issue has been given by the Tribune, both in Fletcher-Stack’s article and in her and Dave Noyce’s conversation with Mary Anne Clkements. I do not feel that the Tribune is representing the points of view or interests of communities at risk of being targeted by these violent separatists.