Reviews tagging 'Sexual harassment'

Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation by Kristin Kobes Du Mez

30 reviews

chloe_601's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.75

Listening to this book felt like tumbling down a bizarre and scary rabbit hole, with more and more developments introducing a new aspect of conservative evangelicalism, and documenting its slow rise through the background of American politics, eventually producing the election of Trump.

It is really well researched, and makes a connection between southern churches and anti-desegregation pastors, to pro-Vietnam war stances anchored by an ideal of rugged masculinity, to Nixon’s southern strategy and the party shift of the later 20th century. This continued with Ronald Reagan’s presidency in the 1980s and opposition to the Equal Rights amendment, through the 1990s and 2000s with support for the war on terror, all the way through the Obama presidency.

It felt like reading a bizarre conspiracy of shadow actors and insane interpretations of a religion, but I think that was just because I hadn’t made the connections between all the people and events before. The mentions of popular evangelical/christian media from when I was raised in that environment was slightly triggering but eye opening at the same time. I had heard and read a lot of accounts of abuse, both physical and mental, in some of the more authoritarian church environments when I deconstructed/left the faith, but reading a chapter listing out scandal after scandal shows just how horrific an environment it is for anyone who isn’t a white cis male.

The book was written from the perspective of someone who is a Christian themselves (though more progressive), which means their conclusions possibly weren’t as strong as I had hoped. But their analysis of the 2016 election, particularly their hypothesis for why evangelicals supported trump so strongly, was well-argued and made complete sense. It seemed like a contradiction at the time, but a deeper look shows that this momentum had been building for the better part of 50 years. Their support mainly came from a place of feeling threatened by not being the dominant majority anymore, and they wanted a strongman to “protect” them.

As scary and dark as reality can be, though, that analysis shows that their support was so fervent and things so insane because their system of militant masculinity, rigid gender roles, and hatred of anyone different is on the way out. It will fight as hard as it can to stay relevant, but eventually it will be in the way out. I just hope we can minimise the amount of people hurt when it lashes out.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Religious bigotry

Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Sexism

meganpbell's review

dark informative reflective medium-paced

4.75

This 75-year-spanning study by a Christian historian traces American evangelicals’ takeover of the Republican Party and shows how their highest values—militarism and masculinity, patriarchy and patriotism—turned a modest Jesus Christ into a macho John Wayne, and made voting for Donald Trump not a necessary evil, but a natural conclusion. As disturbing as it is revelatory, this book is a must read for anyone seeking to make sense of this political era.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Infidelity, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Sexism, War, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, and Rape

nat_montego's review

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Racism

katelyn11's review against another edition

challenging dark informative slow-paced

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment

lkbp17's review against another edition

challenging informative slow-paced

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Homophobia, Xenophobia, and Sexual harassment

bcope84's review

challenging emotional informative medium-paced

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Domestic abuse, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Racism, Sexism, Homophobia, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Islamophobia, Abortion, and Ableism

fkshg8465's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

5.0

This book is full of triggers, so be forewarned before you read it. It filled me with shame for having voted for Reagan the first time I got to vote (I was only mimicking my parents’ votes, but still…). It also makes me wonder why the Islamic culture is the enemy when there are so many parallels in the White evangelical culture that run this country. The book also makes clear to me that everything wrong with the US is perpetuated by this same group.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Xenophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Antisemitism, Biphobia, Bullying, Child abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Lesbophobia, Sexual assault, War, Homophobia, Incest, Islamophobia, Pedophilia, Sexism, and Infidelity

madscientistcat's review against another edition

challenging dark informative medium-paced

4.75

Incredibly informative and impeccably researched. If you want to understand what evangelicals really are and how the community got to where they are now and why they’ve had their outsized impact on the US government, this is it. You will leave this book understanding that and also probably depressed and anxious. The definition of “thanks, I hate it.”

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Gun violence, Racism, Xenophobia, Bullying, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Misogyny, and Islamophobia

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual violence, Gaslighting, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Rape, Slavery, War, Infidelity, Incest, Hate crime, and Deportation

sophmcgraw's review

informative reflective fast-paced

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Racism, Homophobia, Transphobia, Sexual assault, and Xenophobia

elnelson's review against another edition

challenging informative slow-paced

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Islamophobia, and Sexism

Moderate: Xenophobia, Transphobia, Infidelity, Rape, Homophobia, Gun violence, Gaslighting, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, Outing, Sexual harassment, War, Physical abuse, Incest, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, and Deportation