Aaron Bushnell, the 25-year-old U.S. airman who self-immolated in front of the Israeli Embassy in Washington to protest the war in Gaza, was a man of the Left through and through. He belonged to numerous socialist and anarchist organizations. He believed that Israel was a “settler colony” and shrieked, “Free Palestine!” as he set himself ablaze. He even listed his pronouns in the suicide note.
So it really shouldn’t be much of a surprise that he is now being hailed as a hero by the Left. After all, this is the same political faction that swarmed TikTok to express admiration for Osama bin Laden last November — one can sense him licking his chops from the grave. But that doesn’t make it any less disturbing to witness.
“Let us never forget the extraordinary courage and commitment of brother Aaron Bushnell who died for truth and justice!” independent presidential candidate Cornel West wrote on X. “Let us rededicate ourselves to genuine solidarity with Palestinians undergoing genocidal attacks in real time!”
“Dear Aaron Bushnell, 1.35 million people made posts about you in 24 hours,” left-wing influencer Dr. Anastasia Maria Loupis remarked. “You’ll not be forgotten.”
Anti-fascist writer Owen Jones solemnly remarked that “Aaron Bushnell died because he had too much humanity for a world run by people who don’t have any.”
“Incredible,” progressive political commentator Lee Camp raved. “Aaron Bushnell actually succeeded in getting mainstream corporate media to say the word ‘genocide.’”
Of course, these comments provide only a glimpse into the warped world of the radical Left. While most Democrats have acknowledged the tragedy of a young man committing suicide, the overarching sentiment in these circles was of admiration and respect for Bushnell’s commitment to the cause of Palestinian liberation and his “empathy” for the Palestinian people. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), whose presidential campaigns are largely responsible for the radical Left’s ascendence in Democratic Party politics, expressed as much Tuesday afternoon.
“It’s obviously a terrible tragedy,” Sanders said. “But I think it speaks to the depths of despair that so many people are feeling now.”
It should be obvious enough that sentiments of respect for Bushnell’s horrific suicide will encourage copycats, particularly among younger, mentally compromised progressives who long for admiration, dignity, and meaning. The perverse incentive structures of radical progressivism, the very same that encourage adherents to covet oppression in order to accrue social capital, give malevolent forces ample room to operate. The quasi-romantic specter of a young man burning himself alive out of a passionate pursuit for justice has the potential to spread through the zeitgeist like wildfire. And one wonders: Where are the progressive adults in all this? Where are the noble voices of once-noble ideals?
If I were a Democrat working on the logistics of the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the reaction to Bushnell’s self-immolation would make me shiver. President Joe Biden is widely seen in progressive circles as supportive of the Israeli war effort in Gaza, which, in their view, makes him supportive of nothing less than genocide — directly and militarily. If the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is the result of genocidal intent, which, of course, it isn’t, and the American news media continues to describe it as being no different from Auschwitz, then Biden is the most powerful agent of genocide on the planet, and thus, the world’s most evil man.
West, for one, thinks that lighting oneself on fire in protest indicates “extraordinary courage and commitment.” It begs the question: What else might people like him endorse as legitimate political resistance?
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Imagine the following scenario: a young progressive straps on a bomb and explodes herself outside of the United Center in Chicago in August after shouting, “Free Palestine!” Will she be considered a terrorist or a freedom fighter by the Left? My money is on the latter.
Buckle up, everybody.
Peter Laffin is a contributor at the Washington Examiner. His work has also appeared in RealClearPolitics, the Catholic Thing, and the National Catholic Register.
