The Boston Globe - 06.08.2019

TUESDAY, AUGUST 6, 2019 The Boston Globe The Nation A

MASSSHOOTINGS

Trumptold the conservative
televisionhost Laura Ingraham
that people and drugscoming
fromMexico were“reallyan in-
vasion without the guns.”
Since October2018, Trump
has usedvariationsof “inva-
sion” at least 33 timesin
speeches, tweets, and inter-
views, according to a Boston
Globeanalysisof two databases
that track the president’s public
statements.
Like Trump’s tauntthat four
congresswomenshould “go
back”to their countriesof ori-
gin, scholarssay the president’s
“invasion” rhetoric is not a new
invention, but instead a repeat
of language usedin someof the
ugliest moments in American
history. The phrase and the rac-
ist ideology behind it have been
popularwith nativists and poli-
ticians alike over the years;it’s a
code with a simple key.
“Invasionimplies two
things: first, that they don’t be-
long,” said Mae Ngai, a histori-
an at ColumbiaUniversity and
the authorof “Impossible Sub-
jects: IllegalAliensand the
Making of ModernAmerica.”
“Second,invasion signalsthat
it’s a crisis of national security,
as if there werean army.”
Ngaitraces the fear of a “for-

uRHETORIC
Continued fromPageA

eign invasion” of immigrants to

the late 19th century, when

white panic about Chinese

Americanswas pervasive. Such

panic was not confined to the

fringes of society; it reached the

highest court in the land. In

1889,the SupremeCourt of-

feredwhitecitizens and politi-

ciansa legaljustification for ex-

clusionary laws by saying that

immigration was a matter of

nationalsecurity, requiring mil-

itary-level vigilance.

“To preserve its indepen-

dence, and give security against

foreign aggressionand en-

croachment, is the highest duty

of every nation,” the court

wrote. “It matters not in what

form such aggression and en-

croachment come,whether

fromthe foreignnation acting

in its nationalcharacter, or

from vast hordes of its people

crowding in uponus.”

In other words, ordinary

peopleenteringthe United

States couldbe similarto ene-

my soldiers.

“That ruling was passedto

justify the racist exclusion of

Chinese, but actually is the ba-

sis of all our immigration law,”

Ngaisaid.

In the first two yearsof his

presidency, Trump’s use of “in-

vasion” to describe immigra-

tion was relativelyrare, but he

began saying it moreand more

frequently as the 2018midterm

elections neared.He has called

immigration an invasion as re-

centlyas June, according to the

two databases, trumptwitter-

archive.com, which tracks

Trump’s tweets, and Factba.se,

whichcataloguesnearlyevery

statement, speech, interview,

and tweet fromthe president.

“The Wall is underconstruc-

tion and moving along quickly,

despite all of the Radical Liber-

al Democrat lawsuits. What are

they thinking as our Country is

invaded by so many people (ille-

gals)and things (Drugs) that

we do not want,” Trump tweet-

ed on June 2.

In remarks fromthe White

House on Monday, Trump con-

demned “racist hate” and said

the ideologiesof “racism,bigot-

ry, and white supremacy” must

be defeated. But critics say he

has contradicted those senti-

mentsoften withpublicstate-

ments that cast immigrants as

dangerous invaders.

“The ideaof invasion,of

somebody coming in and tak-

ing what is ours,it presupposes

this idea of a centralized Ameri-

can identity that’s under siege,”

said JenniferWingard, a profes-

sor of rhetoricat the University

of Houston. “Typicallythat cen-

tralized identity is kind of Ang-

lo, European; it’s white.”

Wingard said that whileshe

believes it’s the first timea sit-

ting president has usedsuch

rhetoricon a nationalstage,

similar language and policies

have appeared in legislation at

the state and local levels across

the country.

In 1994, California’s Propo-

sition 187, for example, sought

to blockundocumented immi-

grantsfromaccessingsocial

services, public education, and

health care. “Proposition 187

will be the first giant stride in

ultimately ending the ILLEGAL

ALIENinvasion,” supporters

wrote in a public argument in

favor of the proposition,which

voters approved.A federal

judge stoppedit fromtakingef-

fect, however.

More recently, Arizona’s

2010 “Show me your papers”

law madeit a crime for undocu-

mented immigrants to work

and required state law enforce-

ment officials to determine the

legalstatus of peoplethey

stoppedor arrested. The law’s

sponsor, Republican state Sena-

tor Russell Pearce, argued it

would protect people from “the

invasion of illegal aliens we face

today.” The SupremeCourt

struckdownmost of its provi-

sions.

The long-abiding popularity

of the invasion rhetoric stems

perhaps from the layered fears

that it stirs up among white

people.

There are three primary

types of invasion fear, accord-

ing to RenéFlores, a professor

of sociology at the University of

Chicago; Trumphas deployed

all three.

The first is the fear of an eco-

nomic invasion,stoked by the

idea that thereare limited re-

sourcesand undocumented im-

migrants will unfairlyuse them

up.

The secondis the fear of a

criminalinvasion,alongthe

lines of Trump’s falseclaim be-

fore the 2016presidential elec-

tion that Mexicans crossing the

border werelargely drug deal-

ers and criminals.

The third,and perhaps the

most psychically powerful, is

the fear of a cultural invasion,

that what constitutesthe “real”

America will suddenlydisap-

pear.

“He’s nationalizing this cam-

paign,” Flores said. “Even in

places that have very few Lati-

nos, very few immigrants, this

narrative now is widespread.”

ZoeGreenberg canbe reached at

[email protected].

ChristinaPrignano canbe

reached at christina.prignano

@globe.com.

Murder suspect’s alleged screed echoes Trump’s use of ‘invasion’

ByBenedict Carey
NEWYORKTIMES
On Monday morning, Presi-
dent Trump made his first tele-
visedstatementaboutthe mass
murders in El Paso, Texas, and
Dayton,Ohio.He called for ac-
tion to “stop masskillings be-
fore they start,” citing what he
said werea number of contrib-
utingfactors: the contagious
nature of mass murder, the glo-
rification of violence in video
games, and the needto act on
“red flags” to identify those
with mental illnesses who could
commit such crimes.
Many of these factors have
been studied by scientists for
decades.Here are answersto
some common questions:

Can onemass shooting

inspire another?

Yes. Police find abundant ev-

idence that shooters have stud-

ied previous crimes, often mim-

icking gestures or killing tac-

tics,asifinhomagetoprevious

killers. This is trueboth of

younger shooterswhomow

down unarmedpeople in

schools, or at random, and of

oldermenwhoexecute inno-

centsin the nameof an ideolo-

gy — be it opposition to immi-

gration, white supremacy, radi-

cal Islam,or another extreme

belief.

The boy who slaughtered el-

ementary schoolchildren and

teachersin Sandy Hook, Conn.,

had studied the Columbine

massacre, among many others.

The manwho shot to death 50

people at the Pulse nightclub in

Orlandohad studied a previous

attack, in San Bernardino, Calif.

In thosecases,the murderers

cited radical Islam as their justi-

fication.

The young manaccused of

shooting to death morethan 20

adultsand childrenin a Wal-

mart in El Paso over the week-

end had seen the video posted

by the man whohad gunned

downunarmedworshippersat

mosques in Christchurch,New

Zealand.

Forensicpsychologists say

that many would-be masskill-

ers see themselvesas part of a

brotherhoodof like-minded,

isolated and resentful boys and

men.To them, previous mass

murderers may be perceived as

idols and pioneers.

Are video games to blame?

The resultsof studiesat-

tempting to clarify the relation-

ship between violent video

games and aggression have

been mixed, with experts deep-

ly divided.A just-published

analysis of the research to date

concludes that “in the vast ma-

jority of settings,violentvideo

games do increaseaggressive

behavior” — but that “these ef-

fects are almost always quite

small.”

The “aggression” in question

falls well short of assault with a

weapon, never mindmass mur-

der. So the weightof scientific

opinion is that video games are

not a decisivefactor whena

spree killer decides to act.

A 2004report conducted by

the Secret Service and the Edu-

cation Department foundthat

only 12 percent of perpetrators

in morethanthreedozen

schoolshootingsshowedanin-

terest in violent video games.

Establishing a persuasive

link between shooting digital

figuresfromthe couchand real

people in a mallor school is a

long shot. A huge proportion of

males in the United States have

played or are playingvideo

games;only a handfulcommit

massmurders.Andvideo

gamesare even morepopular

in Asian countries, where mass

killings are far rarer.

What about mental illness?

The link is tenuous, at best.

People who blamemassshoot-

ingson “the mentallyill” are

usually reasoning backward

fromthe act itself: The person

just shot 20 unarmed strangers,

so he must be “crazy.”

In fact, scientists find that

only a small fraction of people

with persistent mental distress

are morelikely thanaverage to

commitviolentacts: patients

with paranoidschizophrenia,

which is characterized by delu-

sionalthinkingand often so-

called command hallucinations

— frightening voices identifying

threats where none exist.

People livingin this kindof

misery are far morelikely to be

the victims of violence than per-

petrators, but they can act vio-

lently themselves, especially

when using drugs or alcohol.

The clearest recent example

is Jared Loughner, the college

studentwho openedfire at an

event in Tucson, Ariz., hosted

by then-Representative Gabri-

elle Giffords in 2011, killingsix

and wounding13. Loughner’s

onlineposts demonstrated in-

creasing drug use and paranoid

fantasies.

About 1 in 5 mass murder-

ers shows evidence of psycho-

sis, according to Dr. Michael

Stone, a forensic psychiatrist

whomaintains data on some

350 murderersgoing back

more than a century. The rest

have many of the problems that

nearly everyonehas to manage

at somepoint in life: anger, iso-

lation,depressivemoods,re-

sentments, jealousy.

Copycats, video games, mental illness: What we know

Scientists have

doneresearch

fordecades

ByAstridGalvan
andMorganLee
ASSOCIATEDPRESS
EL PASO — The Texas bor-
der city jolted by a weekend
massacre at a Walmart ab-
sorbedstill moregrief Monday
as the death toll climbedto 22
here.
Anger also simmered, in-
cluding toward President
Trump,whoon Monday ad-
dressedthe nation for the first
time sincethe attack in Texas
and anotherin Ohio.In all, 31
people died and dozens more
werewounded.
The possibility that Trump
wouldvisitEl Paso unnerved
someresidents, who said his di-
visive wordsare partly to blame
for the tragedies.
Democratic Representative
VeronicaEscobar of El Paso
madeclearTrump was not wel-
comein her hometownas it
mourned.
Other residents in the large-
ly Latino city of 700,000said
Monday that Trump’s rhetoric
is difficult for themto stomach.
‘‘It’s offensive, just because
most of us here are Hispanic’’
said Isel Velasco, 25. ‘‘It’s not
like he’s going to helpor do
anything about it.’’
The Federal AviationAd-
ministration advised pilots of a
presidential visit Wednesday to
El Paso and Dayton, Ohio. But

the White House had not made

any formal announcement.

The authoritiesare scruti-

nizinga racist, anti-immigrant

screed posted online shortly be-

fore policesay PatrickCrusius,

21, opened fire on Saturday.

Language in the document mir-

rors some of the words used by

Trump,whoon Monday de-

nounced white supremacy,

which he had been reluctant to

criticize.

The FBI dispatchedofficials

froma domestic-terrorism-

hate-crimesfusioncell to inves-

tigate what John Bash, US at-

torney for the Western District

of Texas, calleddomestic terror-

ism. Bash said federal prosecu-

tors are stronglyweighinghate-

crimes and firearms charges

against Crusius.Those charges

could carry a death sentence.

Crusius already faces a state

capitalmurdercharge, and

prosecutorsin El Paso say they

will seek the death penalty.

He remains in jail after sur-

rendering to police. Police said

he has cooperated andan-

sweredquestions,but they de-

clined to elaborate.

‘‘He basicallyappearsto be

in a state of shock and confu-

sion,’’ GregAllen, the El Paso

police chief, saidat a news

briefing.

Asked whether the shooting

suspect has shownremorse,Al-

len said:‘‘No. Not to the investi-

gators.’’

Precise details of Crusius’s

travels remained unclearMon-

day, but Allensaid the suspect-

ed shooterspent between 10

and 11 hourstraveling from Al-

len, Texas, to El Paso. After ar-

riving, the police chief said, he

got lost in a neighborhood and

then ‘‘found his way to the Wal-

mart because,we understand,

he was hungry.’’

Authoritiesin El Paso iden-

tified the victims on Monday;

amongthemwerepeople from

at least threecountries — the

United States, Mexico, and Ger-

many — whoranged in age

from15 to 90.

Mexican officials have said

eightMexicannationals were

amongthe dead.Tens of thou-

sands of Mexicans legally cross

the border each day to work

and shop in El Paso.

Mexico’s foreign secretary,

Marcelo Ebrard, said Monday

the Mexican government con-

siders the massshooting to be

an act of terrorism against

Mexicancitizenson US soil. He

said Mexico will participate in

the investigation and trial of

Crusius.

The stories of the victims

have provided heartbreaking

glimpses of peoplekilled while

doingsomethingmundane:

shopping at Walmart.

Jordanand AndreAnchon-

do had gone to the store with

their 2-month-old son. They

werelookingto buy birthday

party decorations for Jordan’s

daughter, who was turning6,

and weregoing to have family

and friendsoverto theirnew

homeforthefirsttime,said

Tito Anchondo,Andre’s broth-

er.

Both of themwere killed in

the gunfire.Relativesthink

they died shielding theirbaby.

Alvaro Mena said Monday

that her stepfather, Juan Ve-

lásquez, 78, had diedearlier

that morning. Her mother was

still hospitalized, Mena told re-

porters outsideDel Sol Medical

Center in El Paso.

The couple had beenreturn-

ing a window blind to Walmart

and wereshot in theircar while

parking, Mena said.They left

Juarez, Mexico, several years

ago seeking a safer city.

‘‘That’s why they camehere,’’

Mena said. ‘‘And they came for

this? I just don’t have wordsfor

that.’’

MaterialfromtheWashington

Post wasused in thisreport.

Two more

deaths

raise toll

in El Paso

Some say Trump

should stay away

GREGORY BULL/ASSOCIATEDPRESS

Asylum-seekerslast monthwaitedto applyforentry to the

UnitedStatesalongtheborderin Tijuana,Mexico.

MARIOTAMA/GETTYIMAGES

AideeGutierrez(right)anddaughtersMarleneandBrissaembracedat a makeshift memorialneartheEl Paso Walmart.

‘Thispresident,

whohelpedcreate

thehatredthat

madeSaturday’s

tragedypossible,

shouldnotcome

to ElPaso.’

BETO O’ROURKE