A goodbye to Tomi Lahren

author: annie trussler | op-ed editor

Credit: gage skidmore via flickr

But does this herald Lahren as a feminist hero for standing by her morals? No. Oh, god, don’t make me laugh. No.

Everyone’s favourite loud-mouthed, blonde-haired, tight-lipped, gun-loving, Trump-supporting, racist, misogynistic, and generally all-around unpleasant commentator Tomi Lahren has finally bitten the dust. Her royal heinousness has officially been given the boot from Right Wing talk show The Blaze (otherwise known as the only place she has ever seen fame). It wasn’t the blatant racism, or ugly comments about Muslims, or vehement promotion of firearms that got her fired, no: Tomi Lahren is pro-choice. Let that sink in for just a moment. Even with all the Xenophobia, racism, and general bigotry, abortion was the line to draw.

I’ll be the first to admit I was pretty shocked. Sure, we all know Tomi’s a cis woman (like she would ever let us forget), but to think she actually cared about female health is genuinely astounding. Now, I’m not saying this isn’t a completely ridiculous reason to fire someone – it is, it is entirely unjust. But does this herald Lahren as a feminist hero for standing by her morals? No. Oh, god, don’t make me laugh. No.

There are now a slew of articles plaguing the Internet praising her as some Joan-of-Arc-esque revolutionary. Supporting abortion rights is not somehow your “get-out-of-jail-free card” from a lifetime of bigotry and hate mongering. You’re still going to jail for that. You’re still a hideous, spiteful, viciously cruel and privileged incarnation of millennial racism.

There is an unfortunate trend of praising hateful people for doing what one is supposed to. It’s not special for Tomi to respect abortion rights; those are just the obligations of a decent human being. Respecting other races, genders, ages, and sexualities are also obligations of a real, functioning person, but she can’t seem to muster the willpower or humanity to care. Lahren is what I might call the laziest soap boxer. Her position is used almost exclusively for hate until the hate turns on her, and suddenly she is the victim.

Many liberal and center journalists have come to her aid. “Oh, poor Tomi, victimized by the right!” Lest we forget that Ms. Lahren practically embodies Right Wing ideology; she doesn’t get away with her hate speech because she suddenly cares about reproductive rights. That’s like me robbing a bank but stopping to help an old lady across the street. Everything requires a little perspective, nay, demands it.

I guarantee you are a lackluster activist if something so basic as human respect makes you redeemable, please think again. Tomi Lahren is her hate speech; she is her racism, she is her gun violence, she is her intolerance. A single step in the right direction is not enough to finish the race.