Religion & Liberty Online

Rev. Ben Johnson discusses Black Lives Matter on ‘The Lars Larson Show’

Why would a movement dedicated to black advancement want to dismantle the family, when fatherlessness is associated with every social malady from poverty and crime to delinquency and low self-esteem? Is the racially tinged socialism promoted by Black Lives Matter compatible with the U.S. Constitution? And why does BLM demand that America pay reparations to nations where terrorists have attacked U.S. soldiers or civilians?

I had the privilege of discussing these issues and more on Tuesday, August 11, on “The Lars Larson Show.” The nationally syndicated talk radio host graciously called my Acton Powerblog article “one of the best reviews” of Black Lives Matter’s political agenda.

Other topics during the segment included the exploitation of tragedy for political gain, flawed measures of disparate impact, and why BLM’s policies would “strangle the one form of government that has created the most inherently equal, equitable society in human history: the United States of America and our Constitution.”

Larson’s radio program originates from Portland, Oregon – a city with a history as the epicenter of left-wing riots long predating the current outbreak of Black Lives Matter/Antifa violence. This interlocking history of radical violence is perhaps best exemplified by the arrest earlier this week of Demetria Hester at a riot at which “[c]ommercial grade fireworks and a mortar were used against Portland Police Bureau officers.” In May 2017, Hester had been harassed by Jeremy Joseph Christian, a white supremacist Bernie Sanders supporter who went on to murder two men on a Portland train. (This June, a judge sentenced Christian to two consecutive life sentences.)

“Portlanders need to send a strong message that enough is enough. This is not forwarding the goals that are going to lead to better outcomes for people of color,” said Portland Chief of Police Chuck Lovell.

That’s doubly true of an organization dedicated to channeling justifiable anger into promoting a collectivist system of resentment and government-sponsored plunder.

You can listen to Larson and I discuss why people of faith should not support the Black Lives Matter political manifesto below, or listen on the SoundCloud page.

(Photo credit: A riot in Portland, Oregon, on August 9. bgrocker / Shutterstock.com. Editorial use only.)

Rev. Ben Johnson

Rev. Ben Johnson (@therightswriter) is an Eastern Orthodox priest and served as Executive Editor of the Acton Institute (2016-2021), editing Religion & Liberty, the Powerblog, and its transatlantic website. He has extensively researched the Alt-Right. Previously, he worked for LifeSiteNews and FrontPageMag.com, where he wrote three books including Party of Defeat (with David Horowitz, 2008). His work has appeared at DailyWire.com, National Review, The American Spectator, The Guardian, Daily Caller, National Catholic Register, Spectator USA, FEE Online, RealClear Policy, The Blaze, The Stream, American Greatness, Aleteia, Providence Magazine, Charisma, Jewish World Review, Human Events, Intellectual Takeout, CatholicVote.org, Issues & Insights, The Conservative, Rare.us, and The American Orthodox Institute. His personal websites are therightswriter.com and RevBenJohnson.com. His views are his own.