At one point in time, when someone mentioned the “drug problem” in the United States, you could honestly assume that person was talking about cocaine, or meth, or marijuana.
But lately, it seems like there is a new, much more potent drug that has been popularized.
This is the drug of victimhood.
Formerly, being a victim was a very serious thing, something that people did not take lightly, that elicited a noble reaction, with others trying to step in and help or serve.
But now, being a victim is a status. It’s a badge that is sought after and worn proudly. And most unfortunately, it is a symbol that can be fabricated.
In 2018, Brett Kavanaugh was being vetted as a future Supreme Court Justice. Several women came forward with claims that Kavanaugh committed various types of sexual misconduct many years earlier.
One accuser, Judy Munro-Leighton, claimed that Kavanaugh had raped her in the back of a car. She later admitted that she fabricated the entire claim, in order to get attention and obstruct Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court.
In January of 2019, actor Jussie Smollett told police he had been the victim of a hate crime - that he’d been assaulted by two masked thugs who shouted “MAGA country” while they beat him and poured chemicals on him.
Later, the police interrogated two of Smollett’s acquaintances who admitted that the actor paid them to help stage the entire event - a pretend hate crime against Smollett - because a threatening letter the actor had received days before didn’t get enough attention. Smollett was later arrested for allegedly filing a false police report, eventually being indicted on 16 felony counts - charges that were eventually dropped.
Fast forward to 2020, with America in the heat of more racial tension, and the drug is now ripe for the picking.
Bubba Wallace is a NASCAR driver, the only black individual in the sport, who participated in a race at the Talladega Superspeedway on June 22.
Hours before the race, NASCAR released a statement saying that a “noose” had been found in Wallace’s garage and that they were “angry and outraged.”
The media was informed that there might be a hate crime victim somewhere to report on, so they quickly got to work, with the likes of CNN and ESPN both jumping to cover this heinous act committed against NASCAR’s only black driver.
And of course, other celebs had to jump on that attention train - wouldn’t want to miss that glorious of an opportunity. LeBron James tweeted about it, labeling the presence of the rope as “Sickening!”’
Unfortunately for those involved who were feeling the high of victimhood, the FBI eventually stepped in and ruined the party.
After officials conducted their investigation, it was discovered that the rope was actually a garage door pull rope (tied like a noose). Furthermore, the rope had been in the garage since October of 2019, which puts a slight damper on the whole “hate crime” narrative, since there was no way anyone could know back in 2019 which garage Wallace would be in during this 2020 race.
Once again, an individual was propped up as a victim, asserting publicly that a crime had been committed against him, while no such thing actually happened.
So why do it? Why did Smollett fake his own attack? Why did Munro-Leighton lie about being raped? Why did Wallace go along with claims of a hate crime?
The attention.
If victimhood is the drug, then it follows that news media is the dealer. The TV stations and Twitter posts provide the attention, outrage, and overreaction…the very highs that make this drug so desirable.
Everyone instantly pays attention to you. You’re given a spotlight that you didn’t have before, and for a moment (however brief) you’re significantly more famous than you were before you were a victim.
And as we’ve seen, this spotlight is often used to further political agendas. Munro-Leighton lied about Kavanaugh to prevent him from being appointed to the Supreme Court. Smollett included the “MAGA” details in his fairy tale story because that would have reflected poorly on President Trump.
Wallace is the lone black driver, and in the middle of the 2020 racial fires burning across our nation, he decides to be outraged by a garage pull rope, stoking the fires and claiming some of that “Black Lives Matter” attention for himself.
However, the largest travesty brought on by this drug is its effect on real victims. Those who have actually been subjected to rape, hate crimes, etc. There are many actual victims in our world, who need help and protection.
When airtime is given to celebrities with fake victimhood stories, it hurts the credibility of all who claim to be victims.
Victimhood is no longer viewed as a negative experience that people attempt to solve and move past as quickly as possible. In far too many cases, it has morphed into a relished and coveted position, used by people who just don’t get enough attention or who wish to further a certain political agenda.
God help us see through the lies, to the real hurting people who need help.
