The Japan Times - Trump's MAGA movement ramps up attacks on 'progressive white women'

The death of Renee Good, a 37-year-old American woman killed by a federal agent while protesting Trump's immigration crackdown in Minnesota, has prompted harsh comments against her by numerous conservative commentators.

Radio host Erick Erickson coined an acronym to describe Good -- "AWFUL," or Affluent White Female Urban Liberal.

"White liberal women are a cancer on the nation. They have no real problems, so they're bored" and take on other people's fights, right-wing comedian Vincent Oshana wrote on X.

"They just want to feel important."

Columnist David Marcus meanwhile derisively referred to women activists, like Good, protesting against Trump's immigration actions as "organized gangs of wine moms."

- Women's suffrage a 'tragedy' -

The attacks come amid a dual offensive on the American right -- against modern feminism and placing renewed value on masculinity.

Some right-wing players, particularly Christian nationalists, have for years called for a rethink of the role of women in modern society, even demanding the end of the constitutional right to vote.

The 19th Amendment to the US Constitution "has been a moral and political tragedy for America," firebrand pastor Dale Partridge said in a video last month.

"Why? Women were not made to lead, but to follow and to feel."

Juliet Williams, a gender studies professor at University of California Los Angeles, said such comments are typical of a patriarchal worldview that requires men to "understand themselves as inherently superior."

Trump's administration has meanwhile sought to portray a masculine persona -- typified by Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, who frequently posts videos doing push-ups with soldiers.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recently praised Trump's testosterone levels, saying that another official called them "the highest" he has seen for someone over 70.

In this ideology, Williams said, "hatred of white liberal women is really necessary" because they challenge the ideals of the Christian right.

Women in general favored the Democratic candidate in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections -- but majorities of white women actually voted for Trump, according to Pew Research polling.

Several studies suggest a growing divergence among younger voters.

Gen Z women largely identify as progressive, while young men -- an important demographic in Trump's latest victory -- increasingly lean right.

Williams said attacks on women Democratic voters could be aimed at influencing young women who "are more aware than ever of how closely their social value is indexed on looking a certain way."

- 'Just hotter' -

The women who gravitate around Trump's White House usually wear stylish clothes, high heels, have long wavy hair, and wear heavy makeup. Botox and filler are not rare.

Katie Miller -- a podcaster and wife of Stephen Miller, one of the US president's most influential advisers -- openly mocks what she considers to be the unattractive and unkempt appearance of left-wing women.

"Conservative women are just hotter than Liberal women," she wrote on X, claiming that was the reason conservative families have more children.

The Millers recently announced they are expecting their fourth child, as did Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt is also pregnant with her second child.

Y.Mori--JT