Hollywood's 21st Century Version of McCarthyism

The progressive iteration of McCarthyism is alive and well in the 21^st century. Hollywood leftists have decided to use their burning anger at the election of Donald Trump for something productive: bullying conservatives. That’s right — Hollywood elite have silently decreed that those in the film industry who do not share their political ideology should be punished for the inevitable downfall of the Democratic party.

The Los Angeles Times recently published a report discussing the professional treatment of conservative celebrities in Hollywood. Tinseltown’s approach to conservatives in the film industry has been a much-debated topic — and with good reason. There have been several actors who have voiced the discrimination they have unambiguously experienced as a result of their political beliefs.

This should not come as a shock. Everyone knows that the left is as tolerant as Rachel Dolezal is black. However, in Hollywood, their hypocritical intolerance has gone farther than just criticism and false accusations of racism. It affects the jobs of conservatives who are brave enough to reveal their political ideology.

Indeed, there are some conservatives in the film industry who are outspoken in their political views. Of course you could count them on one hand: Gary Sinise, Jon Voight, Kelsey Grammer and the aging but still influential Clint Eastwood. These are but a few examples of Republican actors who have been successful.

Here’s the thing: Hollywood was not always this antagonistic toward conservatives. There was a time when an actors political views didn’t really matter. In the interview with the Los Angeles Times, Academy Award-winning producer Gerald Molen said:

In the ’90s, it was never really an issue that I had to hide. I was always forthright,” recalled the producer, whose credits include “Schindler’s List” and two “Jurassic Park” movies. “It used to be we could have a conversation with two opposing points of view and it would be amiable. At the end, we still walked away and had lunch together”

Molen goes on to say: “Those days are largely gone. The acrimony — it’s there. It’s front and center.”

Many of Hollywood’s finest who have experienced discrimination were not active during this period. However, if these artists want to continue to get work in the current political climate that is filled with such rancor, they simply cannot afford to divulge their conservative propensities. It’s come to the point where Hollywood blacklists conservatives in the entertainment industry for the sin of not falling in line with the left. So much for tolerance.

The Los Angeles Times also spoke with screenwriter, novelist, and podcaster Andrew Klavan, who discusses this issue on his podcast, “The Andrew Klavan Show.” In the interview, the Times reports:

“I feel absolutely it has harmed me professionally,” said Andrew Klavan, …and a “reluctant” Trump supporter. His credits include the 1990 Michael Caine dark comedy “A Shock to the System” and the novel “True Crime,” which was made into a movie directed by Clint Eastwood. Klavan said that producers have “called my agent asking, ‘Why would you represent this guy?’ Anything that lowers your odds is going to hurt.”

Since Hollywood conservatives are not able to openly express their political views, they have formed an organization called Friends of Abe. The name of the group is a reference to Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican president. The group holds monthly events where they invite conservative speakers. Yet the organization has to keep the identities of its member’s secret — for obvious reasons.

In the report, the Los Angeles Times also interviewed a TV and movie actor who asked that his name not be used. (Wonder why?) He said: “In 30 years of show business, I’ve never seen it like this, if you are even lukewarm to Republicans, you are excommunicated from the church of tolerance.”

While many conservatives in the film industry have not spoken of their political views in the public square, there are some who have — and they paid dearly for it. In an article for Newsbusters, Christian Toto discusses some of the conservatives affected by Hollywood’s “tolerance.” He writes:

From Clueless to Jobless: Stacey Dash rose to fame as a co-star in the beloved cult comedy Clueless. The gorgeous actress, an unabashed conservative, doesn’t work much these days. Why? Let her tell the tale: “My acting opportunities have ceased because of my political beliefs. I’m being persecuted in Hollywood. I’ve been blacklisted. My agents have dropped me.”

Toto also describes the treatment actress Maria Conchita Alonso received when she participated in a video for a conservative politician:

Maria Conchita Alonso dared to cut a political video in 2014 for a conservative politician. Her punishment? She was forced to quit a Spanish language production of The Vagina Monologues due to the boycott pressure placed upon her. The artistic community neglected to rally to her side.

In an interview with Variety, actor and model Antonio Sabato, Jr. described his experience as a conservative in Hollywood. He was excoriated because he spoke at the Republican National Convention. He said:

I’ve had fantastic directors who have said officially to my agents and managers they will never hire me again. They will never even see me for projects. That’s unfair. It’s just like Communism.

Actress Angie Harmon has also dealt with the consequences of being a conservative in the entertainment industry. Fox News reported:

And not long after Obama’s first swoop into the White House, actress Angie Harmon told us that she was left with the “racist” label for vocalizing her disappointment in the Democratic leader, and claimed that she had been rejected for jobs over the years due to her right-of-center views.

It is one thing to criticize a person for their political views. It is quite another to make it harder for them to earn a living. Unfortunately, many on the left do not see it this way — especially in the film industry. Instead of winning people over to their side, they resort to punishing and ostracizing those who dare to challenge their views.

While this method has worked for the left in the past, it is now turning on them. Americans have rejected this approach by handing Republicans congress, the presidency, and most of the governorships. Certainly there are well-meaning leftists who do not approve of this type of behavior but there are still many who embrace this ugly side of leftist tactics.

The menacing behavior is not only on display in Hollywood: It is visible during violent leftist protests, and in the erroneous accusations of bigotry and racism directed against their opponents. And it is present in universities who try to squash free speech.

More and more Americans are seeing this intimidating oppression of the left, and it has driven them farther away from these so-called progressives. Ultimately, if these people continue down this road, the only thing they will succeed in is creating more Republicans. For in the words of Thomas Paine, “The end of all political associations is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of man; and these rights are liberty, property, security, and resistance of oppression.”