There seems to be this weird path to respectability for bigotry in current discourse:

1) Bigots deliberately tell malicious lies about minorities

2) Some people believe these lies

3) When bigots are called out for telling lies, they say that "this is what people believe" and imply anyone who doubts them is some kind of elitist who is repressing the ordinary voter

4) Media falls in line

It's like the truth is no longer relevant, it's 100% about how things are perceived. If someone can get enough voters to perceive things a certain way, the media will refuse to question it.

#Politics #Bigotry