Rep. Barry Loudermilk Claimed Multiculturalism Will "Dilute" America in Old Essay
A 2002 essay that appears to have been authored by Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-GA) before he was elected to Congress warns that multiculturalism will “dilute” America’s “national identity.”
“This idea of America being a multi-cultural community has served only to dilute our sovereignty and our national identity. As Americans, we have our own culture, our own society, our own language, and our own lifestyle.”
Loudermilk’s rhetoric about “diluted” identity and culture is reminiscent of language used by white supremacists. In the essay, Loudermilk went on to assert America’s identity as a Christian nation as he criticized efforts in public schools to be more inclusive of other religions and aetheism:
“‘In God We Trust’ is our national motto. This is not some off-the-wall, Christian, right wing, political slogan. It is our national motto. It is engraved in stone in the House of Representatives in our Capitol, and it is printed on our currency. We adopted this motto because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation; and this is clearly documented throughout our history. If it is appropriate for our motto to be inscribed in the halls of our highest level of government, then it is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools.”
Particularly disturbing is Loudermilk’s suggestion that anyone who objects to Christian depictions and understanding of God should not live in the United States:
“God is in our pledge, our National Anthem, nearly every patriotic song, and in our founding documents. We honor His birth, death, and resurrection as holidays, and we turn to Him in prayer in times of crisis. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of our culture, and we are proud to have Him.”
The essay seems to have originally been published in a local Georgia paper, the Bartow Trader. The essay was republished in Vietnow National Magazine, a now-defunct magazine associated with a charity by the same name. While no longer available on the Bartow Trader website, the essay is still available on an archive of the VietNow site, as is an interview with Loudermilk about the essay.
The essay has been reshared every few years — often in right-wing groups, where it has been met with praise. It resurfaced once more after Dana Barrett, Loudermilk’s 2020 Democratic challenger, posted about it on Twitter. Barrett also alleged that Loudermilk said “radical leftists from California and New York think they can buy GA-11.” This is an antisemitic dog whistle.