'Mind-blowingly stupid': Josh Hawley roasted for Juneteenth slavery remarks
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) posted what was meant to be a supportive tweet marking Juneteenth — a federally-recognized holiday marking the emancipation of the final enslaved persons in the U.S. — but his remarks were roundly criticized for whitewashing the horror of slavery.
“Today is a good day to remember: Christianity is the faith and America is the place slavery came to die,” wrote Hawley on Twitter.
Writing for Jezebel, Laura Bassett slammed Hawley's remarks as "mind-blowingly stupid."
"In reality, as Jeet Heer and many others pointed out in response to Hawley’s inane commentary, the United States lagged decades behind most other countries in the Western hemisphere in abolishing slavery. England, Mexico, France, and Denmark had all ended slavery before we adopted the 13th Amendment in 1865," wrote Bassett.
"And while it’s unclear from a logical or even syntax perspective what 'Christianity is the faith' is supposed to mean in that tweet, Hawley also seems to be whiffing on the irony that Americans used Christianity to justify slavery in the first place." Fredrick Douglass highlighted this clearly, noted Bassett — he wrote, "I love the pure, peaceable, and impartial Christianity of Christ; I therefore hate the corrupt, slave-holding, women-whipping, cradle-plundering, partial and hypocritical Christianity of this land."
"For white people, June 19th is a great day either to read and amplify Black voices and Black history and consider the racist underpinnings of this nation, or at least shut the f--k up if you’re uninterested in doing the aforementioned," wrote Bassett. "Unfortunately, many white people — particularly Republican white men — find themselves incapable of any kind of self-reflection on this day and instead vomit their fragile, defensive feelings on main. Exhibit A: Sen. Josh Hawley."
Hawley has previously come under controversy for opposing legislation to rename the handful of U.S. military bases named for Confederate generals and officers.