Guy Carmeli Blog 6- Protest Songs in Response to Hegemonic Aggression

American gun owners have, in reaction to increase scrutiny from the public eye on firearms in general, adopted an anticipatory strategy to retain their guns (and thus their identities) and separate themselves from those who disagree with their ideology. Interestingly, this particular strategy is not an entirely new one. Rather, it is the rapid evolution towards extreme anti-authoritarian (and often racist/xenophobic) rhetoric in the public sphere that belies the true magnitude of this shift.

In response to shifts in hegemony, certain individuals feel their identity as Americans is being threatened. Many gun owners are proud hunters and feel that their weapons are important tools in maintaining their self-sufficiency, a trait which defines them. This is in no way wrong. However, when the laws regarding those tools change, it can cause a visceral reaction.

As someone with a healthy amount of paranoia and distrust of any government, I find myself agreeing with the video and essay responses from gun owners far more often than gun control activists, especially when the idea of self-defense is mentioned. But all too often, racist and sexist tirades against "liberals" or other people who do not match the outdated hegemonic ideal of white protestant America follow and leave me disgusted.

To summarize: conservative gun owners are becoming fundamentalists in their quest to maintain the status quo. While this cleanses the group of outsiders who are not committed enough to the cause, it also creates a situation in which there are no outside perspectives being taken seriously, which furthers the rapid march towards extremity. Unfortunately, this does second-amendment activists a great disservice, by building those in favor of gun-control a convenient strawman to attack in the public eye. Furthermore, alienation of moderates also weakens their attempts to garner public support.