For the last several months, social media and online forums have been aflame with far-right rhetoric, hate, and bigotry. Emboldened since the Trump presidential victory, it appears more and more individuals are willingly going public, and most worrisome, without consequence. On the flip side, we have seen protestors, advocates, and well-meaning organizations and people be reprimanded because they don’t fit into the increasingly fascist, right-wing mold.
One such local example appeared on a post by ‘What’s going on in Rhode Island.’ This post was about June Rose, a protestor affiliated with Rhode Island’s Providence City Council who attended the Trump Tower protest. The comment section, like most others, was filled with horrific and inflammatory language against Rose, most of whom willfully used their full public names.
Tony Lanni, a Rhode Island and Massachusetts-based RE/MAX realtor, was one of them, commenting that “they” should get death.
In the fight against the fascistic mistreatment of marginalized communities, it’s darkly ironic to see someone outside those communities defend their oppression. And though the word ‘they’ may refer to protestors in this instance, the term often functions as a dog whistle used against those very groups and dissenters.
In an email, Richard Zompa of RE/MAX stated they had spoken to Lanni; however, no disciplinary action was taken, and Lanni “regrets the comment.” See the below section for the full response.
This is a single case of a more common pattern: increases in these types of comments and public acceptance of such behavior. Let’s be clear: publicly posting these types of comments should, at minimum, result in immediate job termination and any related affiliation. However, ever since the Trump presidency, consequences have become rarer.
We are not just disappointed in REMAX’s response, but we also question the moral integrity of the organization as a whole.
