European Semiotics and the Radical Right Christian Maines Feature
feature / 1 Crusaders Past and Present: European Semiotics and the Radical Right Christian Maines In a Tortoiseshell: In his Writing Seminar R3, Christian Maines puts the discourse we see today in the news regarding the Alt-right into historical context, letting his research guide his understanding of the group, rather than the other way around. His use of structuring elements—purposeful orienting, definitions of key terms, clear topic sentences, consistent tie back sentences—sets his argument up for success. Motivating his thesis from the beginning to the end, Christian is able to not only sustain his topic, but make an insightful contribution to our understanding of the Alt-right. Feature Between Aug. 11th and 12th of 2017, crowds swarmed the streets of Charlottesville wearing plate armor, carrying torches, and calling out battle cries—chants of “You will not replace us!” and “Deus Vult!” echoed through the streets.1 By sundown on the 13th, there was a memorial of flower wreathes on the ground for Heather Heyer, struck down by a car in the midst of the protests.2 Coverage of the violence largely associated the protests with the “Alt-Right,” a loosely- defined collection of radical American nationalists with undertones of racism and extremism.3 Immense violence and tragedy came about in this single instance of conflict spurred on by the Alt-Right. However, in recent months, the consensus in news media has been that the movement is dead, as authors claim that the Alt-Right “has grown increasingly chaotic and fractured, torn apart by infighting and legal troubles,” and cite lawsuits and arrests, fundraising difficulties, tepid recruitment, counter protests, and banishment from social media platforms.4 1 Staff, “Deconstructing the symbols and slogans spotted in Charlottesville,” accessed 14 April 2018, https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/local/charlottesville- videos/?utm_term=.370f3936a4be.
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