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With their tortured adoption of words like “woke” and “based,” white conservatives (men, in particular) have shown that they get a kick out of appropriating Black lingo.
That trend is in focus again thanks to a video from an event held for Donald Trump over the weekend. On Sunday, the presumptive Republican nominee for president delivered a speech at The People’s Convention, a gathering in Detroit hosted by right-wing activist group Turning Point Action and its founder, conservative agitator Charlie Kirk. Ironically, the appearance came after an event where Trump portrayed himself as a political ally to Black voters.
Kirk and his associates are known for spewing racist bile from Kirk’s podcast and their personal social media accounts. And, in fact, a viral video from The People’s Convention shows some of those associates waving a flag and handing out hats with the phrase “White Boy Summer.”
The scene had the same absurdist feel as many right-wing events these days (which, for the record, I think is deliberate). But goofy as it may seem, this is not something we should take lightly.
This phrase, which the Anti-Defamation League notes has become become popular among white supremacists, first began as a variation of a statement of womanly pride by rapper Megan Thee Stallion. Megan popularized the phrase “Hot Girl Summer” in 2019 to promote women’s independence and bodily autonomy. She faced misogynistic backlash for promoting these things, spurring some men to promote the phrase “Hot Boy Summer” as a cringeworthy competitor. Then, white men — such as Tom Hanks’ son Chet — appropriated the phrase to create “White Boy Summer” as a declaration of their purportedly fleeting summertime freedom.
And that’s how we arrive in the present day, where the phrase “White Boy Summer” has become a way for white supremacists to promote what is essentially unhinged white hypermasculinity (and all the oppressive bigotry it represents). And that’s why, as silly as it may seem to discuss, it’s significant that the organizers of an event for the presumptive GOP presidential nominee would tout it. It certainly speaks to the true driving force behind Trump’s campaign: white men.
Relatedly, Media Matters just published an excellent report on the The People’s Convention and how Kirk’s Turning Point organizations carefully use popular figures and phrases linked to white nationalism — like “White Boy Summer” — to promote their ideas within the Republican National Committee and the Trump campaign.
You can check the report out here.