In the wake of the recent attacks by the Palestinian-backed terrorist organization Hamas on Israel, a disturbing trend has emerged. Demonstrations in support of Palestine and Hamas have erupted on college campuses, particularly at Ivy League schools like Harvard and state colleges and universities. There have even been major pro-Palestinian (aka pro-Hamas) rallies in major cities like London and Washington, D.C.
This surge of support for a terrorist organization is deeply concerning to many onlookers.
Concerning? Yes. But for anyone who has been tracking the woke movement over the last decade, it shouldn’t be surprising. There is a direct correlation between support for the Marxist Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement and support for the terrorists in Palestine.
In fact, the Black Lives Matter Grassroots organization posted a lengthy statement on their social media defending the violence undertaken by Hamas as an “act of self-defense.” In their statement, they said:
“As the world is faced with deep questions about self-determination, as well all desire and pray for a world of peace, we must stand unwaveringly on the side of the oppressed. When a people have been subject to decades of apartheid and unimaginable violence, their resistance must not be condemned, but understood as a desperate act of self-defense.”
They go on to add,
“Black Lives Matter Grassroots stands in solidarity with our Palestinian family who are currently resisting 57 years of settler colonialism and apartheid. As Black people continue the fight to end militarism and mass incarcerations in our own communities, let us understand the resistance in Palestine as an attempt to tear down the gates of the world’s biggest open air prison.
As a radical Black organization grounded in abolitionist ideals, we see clear parallels between Black and Palestinian people.”
This is what many conservatives have been warning about for years now. Black Lives Matter isn’t some movement for “racial justice.” No, it’s a borderline domestic terrorist organization, built on lies, that finds common cause with the most violent actors around the globe. And these demonstrations are not isolated cultural incidents. They are part of a larger movement that has taken root in our society, a movement characterized by ‘wokeness,’ diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, and support for Marxist ideologies. This movement, which includes groups like Black Lives Matter, champions causes that are at direct odds with traditional American Christian values and principles.
The connection between these demonstrations, BLM, Hamas, and the broader ‘woke’ movement is clear. Both are driven by a desire to challenge the “status quo,” tear down all hierarchies, and destroy “whiteness.” Yes, these groups claim that they are simply advocating for those they perceive as “oppressed.” However, this advocacy lacks any real understanding of the complex issues at play. In the case of the Israel-Palestine conflict, support for Hamas overlooks the group’s violent terrorist tactics and its recent, bloody invasion.
Writing for The Heritage Foundation, Mike Gonzalez explains that:
“BLM is transnational, just as co-founder Alicia Garza, donning a Palestinian keffiyeh no less, admitted in 2010 (three years before creating BLM) that Third World enemies of the United States had asked activists like her to set up entities that would help take the U.S. boot “off our neck.”
They also believe that ‘decolonization,’ a mantra of the movement, is to be carried out ‘by any means necessary.’
That’s an expression by the 1960s revolutionary Frantz Fanon, the New Left’s favorite Third World author, though it is often associated with Malcolm X because he, too, said it often.
It means that decolonization must be carried out with rape and carnage. Bloodlust is purifying. To fanatics, Hamas’s butchery of civilians is an integral part of revolution.”
From a conservative Christian perspective, this should be rejected as wicked. The Bible teaches us to “seek peace and pursue it” (Psalm 34:14). Supporting a group that engages in violence is not in line with these teachings.
It should also serve as a stark reminder that wokeness is a poison. It’s an acid. It’s a framework of thought that perverts true justice and manages to justify just about any act of violence if that violence serves its revolutionary ends.
Moreover, the Bible warns against false teachings and ideologies that can lead us astray. The Apostle Paul writes in Colossians 2:8,
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.”
The “woke” movement, with its emphasis on subjective truth and its rejection of absolute moral standards, is one such deceptive philosophy.
Christians are instructed that we can judge a tree by its fruit. Well, the fruit of BLM is support for Hamas, so the verdict is that this is a very sick tree.
The recent demonstrations in support of Hamas are just the latest symptoms of a larger problem. The “woke” movement, with its embrace of radical ideologies and its rejection of traditional values, is clearly influencing our society in profound and troubling ways. As conservative Christians, we must respond with wisdom, discernment, and a commitment to biblical truth.
That begins with a wholesale and unapologetic rejection of BLM and everything it stands for.
Too many Evangelical leaders got this wrong over the last decade. Now, with BLM linking arms with Hamas, will they finally get it right?
Originally published at the Standing for Freedom Center.
William Wolfe is a visiting fellow with the Center for Renewing America. He served as a senior official in the Trump administration, both as a deputy assistant secretary of defense at the Pentagon and a director of legislative affairs at the State Department. Prior to his service in the administration, Wolfe worked for Heritage Action for America, and as a congressional staffer for three different members of Congress, including the former Rep. Dave Brat. He has a B.A. in history from Covenant College, and is finishing his Masters of Divinity at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Follow William on Twitter at @William_E_Wolfe
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