Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Culture Warlords: My Journey Into the Dark Web of White Supremacy by Talia Lavin

21 reviews

klsreads's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

3.5

There was a lot I really liked about this book. The scary look into far-right infiltrative journalism really put me on edge. Lavin is incredibly brave and principled. However, much of this book read like a collection of well-written journal articles. The overall story lacked cohesiveness. I enjoyed each section independently ("We Keep Us Safe" was a standout), but don't go into this expecting a deep dive into the path of online radicalism. It's good as a more intro-level text of vignettes. Lavin's writing is strong, personal, and emotional, though I found it repetitive (and I spent a fair amount of time looking up words). 3.5 stars.

"To those who find themselves uncomfortable with the operation of antifascists outside the comfortable bounds of institutions and, at times, the law, I remind you that the French partisans of World War II were acting illegally, while the Einsatzgruppen had the full support of German law. We tend to like our noble lawbreakers to be comfortably in the past, where time and death have sanitized them into heroes, and to suffer those who struggle against injustice in the present only grudgingly, if at all."

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Police brutality, Cursing, Ableism, Body horror, Racial slurs, Gaslighting, Body shaming, Sexism, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Racism, Misogyny, Transphobia, Animal cruelty, Antisemitism, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Cultural appropriation, Genocide, Death, Suicide, Stalking, Grief, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Islamophobia, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Self harm, Slavery, Hate crime, War, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment, Torture, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Child death and Pandemic/Epidemic

flufficorn's review

challenging dark informative tense medium-paced

4.0

This book is not a traditional call-to-action book, and that is not a bad thing. This book is a series of informative, first-hand essays about the author's experience in online white supremacist spaces. The author plainly explains that the goal of this book is to inform so that we, the readers, can learn to identify radical white supremacy and call it out as needed. While call-to-action books are great, they don't work if we don't first understand when to act. This book should be considered the step before a call-to-action book. 

As someone who lives publicly as a Jewish person, I found this book informative, enraging, and a little sad. Hearing some stories about how people came to these movements, why they believe what they do, not only makes me angry, but makes me sad as well. 

I also learned a lot of terminology from within these movements, the difference between different white supremacy movements, and about events that these people cling to as proof that their world view is the one right world view. Because of this, I think this book is immensely important and should be read by anyone who says they aren't a white supremacist. 

The reviews about "I wanted this book to be..." are ridiculous. Open your mind, Broaden your horizons. That's what books are about. Duh. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence

Moderate: Violence and Sexual violence

colorlessgrey's review

challenging informative slow-paced

3.0

Culture Warlords has a lot of good information about the state of modern white supremacy in America, especially in online spaces. However, the author is at times hyperbolic when communicating factual information, which is misleading. I have heard some of the same information from other sources (such as public radio) that I trust, so I know it's accurate at the core, but it is irresponsible to deliver the information with as much exaggeration a the author uses. The writing style of the book in general was not my favorite, and that made it a slower read for me than it could have been otherwise.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Sexism, Gun violence, Antisemitism, Racism, and Xenophobia

jonezzzing's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Religious bigotry, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Mass/school shootings, Misogyny, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Hate crime, Antisemitism, and Violence

caseythereader's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

3.75

 - I think it is important, when you can manage it, to look at horrible things straight on so you know what you're up against. That said, CULTURE WARLORDS is filled with some of the most horrifying and horrific things I've ever read, all the more terrifying because it's all happening right under our noses.
- I think if you've spent any time at all learning about (or experiencing) what the far right is up to, there isn't a lot of new information in this book. However, Lavin really does a great job of linking seemingly disparate ideologies, events, and social and governmental failures together to show how we arrived here. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Cursing, Hate crime, Homophobia, Police brutality, Murder, Suicide, Transphobia, Racial slurs, Rape, Blood, Racism, Religious bigotry, Xenophobia, Animal death, Death, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Violence, War, Islamophobia, Antisemitism, Mass/school shootings, Misogyny, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, and Stalking

collins1129's review

dark informative fast-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Stalking, Violence, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Antisemitism, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Death, Domestic abuse, Biphobia, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Colonisation, Gore, Gun violence, Lesbophobia, Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Murder, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Genocide, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Xenophobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, and Transphobia

lily1304's review

challenging dark reflective medium-paced

3.5

Unfortunately I was already fairly familiar with white supremacist organizing thanks to living in Minneapolis-St. Paul in 2020, but I actually learned a lot here about antifascism. Lavin even referenced Unicorn Riot, an independent journalist group I follow. I realized how much of their work documenting protests and infiltrating white supremacist groups online - that all falls under Lavin's conceptualization of antifascism. So I appreciated that perspective.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Misogyny, Mass/school shootings, Islamophobia, Hate crime, Racism, Antisemitism, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment, and Gun violence

Moderate: Rape, Fatphobia, and Genocide

outtoexist's review

challenging dark informative slow-paced

3.75

I enjoyed this book, but often the writing was difficult to orient myself in, as someone who doesn't know the names of right-wing politicians much less mass shooters. It felt wandering at times, and I often lost the thread of the chapter about half way through only to remember when she started to sum it up at the end. That said, the information and details on white supremacist groups in this book are horrifying but essential to know. Understanding how normal ass people get sucked into these hatefilled groups is the only way to understanding how to get them out of it. Seeing them as full people who weren't always neo-nazis and who see their neo-nazi-ism as a deeply held belief they've read & researched. It is essential to know their experience to know how to define them - not to excuse their behavior, but to better understand how they got where they are and how they can be brought back into the light.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Racism, Racial slurs, Gun violence, Violence, Sexual violence, and Xenophobia

acy's review

challenging dark informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Gun violence, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Mass/school shootings, Misogyny, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Genocide, Homophobia, Police brutality, Sexual harassment, and Suicidal thoughts

niamhellen's review

dark informative tense medium-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mass/school shootings, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Xenophobia, and Violence