Book Structure and Overview
The book Bring the War Home discusses the rise of the white power movement after the encounter the American soldier had during the Vietnam War. The iconic War that led to mass killings of American soldiers resulted in blame on the existing political and military policies. The veterans who survived the deadly encounter during the Vietnam War between 1954 and 1975 felt that the government did not fully facilitate the victory due to communism, which was present during the War. In addressing the reasons for the rise of the white supremacy movements, Katherine Belew divides this book into three parts.
The elemental parts of this book are formation, adoption, and manifestation. After the defeats during the Vietnamese War, the military veterans branded them as the lone wolves who were left to wander and survive alone in tens of circumstances where they could be assisted. In her book, Belew draws back the 1995 Oklahoma attacks to the white soldier’s frustration during the Vietnam War. The iconic terrorist attacks, according to Belew, marked the start of the white power movement and the effort to force the United States government to end communism.
The Oklahoma attacks, which mainly occurred at the Alfred P. Murrah building, are the defining moment used by Katherine to address the rise of White supremacy. Using the take-back technique, Belew develops the book’s primary structures into terrorist attacks in the later days. Raising the argument on the primary motives of the offender, which was to file a revenge suit against the United States government due to its negligence during the Gulf War. Belew developed the argument on the rise of white supremacy.
Formation
The “formation” aspect makes up the first part of this book. Right after the Vietnam War, the white military survivors mobilized themselves to form training and military camps only meant for white people. In her book, Belew says that the training camps exhibited high racial discrimination since the soldiers were only taught the techniques that the veterans learned during the Vietnam War. According to Belew, the separation of the white soldiers marked a threat to communism since the white soldiers were encouraged to fight against the other races, who were the minority.
Mobilization and Expansions
After the formation of white military groups, mobilization and expansions were the second strategy, Belew’s expansions of white supremacy against the American government. The Timothy McVeigh Oklahoma attack resulted from mobilization and the development of notions that the government was against white people. Throughout the book, Belew portrays the tussle between white capitalists and the government, depicting how frustration had built up among whites to solely dominate social and political positions in the United States.
Internal Conflicts Rooted in Racial and Political Frustrations
In this book, Belew provides a structured framework on how the tussle between whites and the government in the pursuit of favors is the cause of internal conflicts. Belew relates repeated attacks and disappointment, such as the Oklahoma attack, to cultural and racial differences. The demand to be defended and prioritized, both in the political, social, and military settings among the whites, is the root cause of internal conflicts. Belew’s Bring the War Home illustrates the internal tussle in America due to racial backgrounds. She uses the movement as a whole’s views on Vietnam to illustrate how the US did not put up the required effort to protect itself.
Belew’s Historical Insight on War, Betrayal, and National Division
Belew then demonstrates how, due to their military activities in Desert Storm, a new generation of white power activists defined themselves by their involvement in the War. The War gave activists fodder for their hatred and the ability to raise a generation of “white warriors.” Belew attempts to present the American white power movement as an integrated unit, with various leaders cooperating to guide, fund, and put together the movement to achieve a single common goal, even though her opinions regarding how the War in Vietnam affected the far-right in the United States are very logical. The American far-right, however, is far from being unified, according to historians, with various organizations and people expressing racialist views. Even in Belew’s work, she notes that different groups had diverse conceptions of “victory” depending on the circumstances surrounding their establishment.
Political and social dominance within a region of missed cultures results in inequalities. Belew explains the racial inequalities between whites and other racial and ethnic groups in the United States. The white movement, popularly regarded as the “far right people in the book, poses a great danger to the rest of society.
This book explains how the United States government ignored the threats posed by white supremacists against communists. Belew illustrates the impact of external conflicts and failures on a country’s internal peace, thereby serving as an enlightenment on how the government can formulate policies that promote the protection of minors. The book, a historical masterpiece on the effect of external relations on domestic coexistence, emphasizes the aspects of betrayal and how it results in tattered relationships and even fatalities within the community.