Free Republic

Racial hoaxes reinforce different groups’ worst suspicion of one another: Whites are racists. Blacks are criminals. Over the past 25 years, I’ve analyzed more than 100 racial-hoax cases, beginning with the 1987 case of Tawana Brawley, an African American teen who falsely said that several white men had raped her. A woman has been charged with vandalism under $1,000 after authorities say she used a rock to carve “white pride” into the sidewalk at a Johnson City business. Black people who create hoaxes are more likely to say they were victims of a hate crime by an imaginary white perpetrator....

The Jussie Smollett investigation seems to have turned a corner over the past few days, but police haven’t issued a definitive statement yet. Regardless of what happens next, now seems like a good moment to remember that high-profile hate hoaxes have become a fairly common occurrence in the Trump era. Reporter Andy Ngo made a list on Twitter this morning: Andy Ngo ✔ @MrAndyNgo Right after Donald Trump’s election, the SPLC really stoked panic. A pro-gay Episcopal church in Indiana was vandalized w/“Heil Trump,” a swastika, & an anti-gay slur. Turns out it was the gay organ player who did...