The danger of dehumanizing language
Jan. 17, 2021, 4:30 AM EST
By Erin Cassese, Nathan P. Kalmoe, Lilliana Mason and Alexander Theodoridis
... the United States is deeply polarized ...
... as the 2020 election approached, what had been a simmer of partisan antagonism approached a boil ...
That .. culminated in the .. assault ...
... we asked partisans whether their opponents “lack the traits to be considered fully human - they behave like animals.” Between 2017 and 2020, the proportion of partisans who agreed rose from around 18 percent to 35 percent. As our evidence of partisan dehumanization has accumulated, we have grown increasingly concerned about its implications for our democracy and society ...
... a national survey .. in February 2020 .. found that the 24 percent of partisans who believe the other party “behaves like animals” were significantly more supportive of immediate partisan violence, violence if one’s party loses the 2020 presidential election and sending threats to opposing leaders and citizens. (In a September survey, 25 percent of partisans endorsed post-election violence if their party lost.) ... Research has .. shown that dehumanization is a self-reinforcing process — when our opponents dehumanize us, we are more likely to dehumanize them in return, in a vicious cycle ...
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/pro-trump-capitol-riot-violence-underscores-bipartisan-danger-dehumanizing-language-ncna1254530
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