Kerby Anderson

I recently saw an op-ed co-authored by Tucker Carlson with the arresting title, “Woke Fascism.” I wanted to read the authors’ perspective since I wrote a commentary back in February with the title “Woke Politics.” All of us have noticed the number of candidates that were forced to apologize for something.

The op-ed begins with a question: “How do you know if you’re living in a free society? Here’s a quick test: Are you allowed to say obviously true things in public?” In his book, 1984, George Orwell put it this way: “Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four.”

Mayor Pete has had to apologize for saying that “all lives matter.” It is true. All lives black, white, and every race matter. But African-American activists said his statement was offensive. He had to apologize.

Kirsten Gillibrand had to apologize for using the phrase “illegal alien.” She was even forced to read a confession on live television because a few years ago she expressed sympathy for the idea of a closed border.

But woke fascism shows up in every venue. Hardly a week goes by before I see some student in grade school or middle school being disciplined for saying that there are only two genders. You don’t see as many stories about high school or college students because they quickly learn that you should never challenge a teacher or professor about gender identity or sexual orientation.

It gets worse. On college campuses and in many other venues, you really aren’t allowed to even ask legitimate questions about topics ranging from race to immigration to climate change. It’s not just the fact that you can’t state the truth. You can’t ask others what evidence they have for their perspective or opinion.

This is what it means to live in a world of woke fascism where just speaking the truth can get you in trouble.