Last month, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott invited Hungarian President Katalin Novák to his mansion to discuss trade and economic partnerships. When I read about this, an intrusive thought entered my mind: Abbott knowingly welcomed autocracy to his doorstep.
Novák is a member of Fidesz, Hungary’s populist right-wing ruling party, which had its foundation paved by Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Orban, a prolific anti-woke autocrat, has adopted an increasingly conservative political agenda, dismantling independent media and refuting the basic human rights of LGBTQIA+ people.
After initiating a law allowing Hungarians to report to officials of LGBTQIA+ residents raising children, it has become quite clear that Novák, the first female president in Hungary, hangs like a marionette doll ready to be maneuvered by the hands of Orban.
Hungary is a country reflecting the idealism of American conservatives. It is the homogenous utopia sought after by those who hope to “Make America Great Again,” so it is not surprising a red state, such as Texas, invited Orban as a guest speaker for the 2020 Conservative Political Action Conference.
In his speech, Orban reaffirmed that LGBTQIA+ individuals pose a threat on traditional family values and the “gay agenda” they push onto children, an idea popular among insatiable conservatives who love to cry about it on Tucker on X.
The danger of autocracy extends beyond the border. As autocratic regimes gain strength and influence, they can undermine international norms and institutions that support democracy and human rights.
I sat through Orban’s speech, watching it virtually on my iPad. He beckoned Texans to adopt stricter laws to show an intolerance toward the LGBTQIA+ community because they are a danger to the conservatives’ ideological bubble and a threat to civilization.
As I was listening to the speech, I wondered, when did I become the enemy of the state?
We can look back at history and find several instances when a minority or a marginalized group was used as a scapegoat for a dictator to unite a nation simply by appointing them as an enemy they could all be afraid of.
But too often, what comes to mind when picturing an autocracy are images of an insidious dictator who orchestrated a massive coup to overthrow democracy. In our modern era, an autocracy is much more sophisticated and precise.
Instead of a huge upheaval, pawns are placed in power to play their roles in what seemingly appears to be a game of democracy. Interestingly, the results always favor the leader you just cannot shake off.
In the 21st century, a militia of autocrats will not come crashing through my door with tanks, displacing me from my home, sticking a pink triangle on me and sending me to a concentration camp.
In the 21st century, autocrats will send their lawyers to lobby and change laws that are inconvenient.
You can say Hungary walked so Florida could run because shortly after the country passed a bill banning LGBTQIA+ instruction for those under 18, an oddly familiar “Don’t Say Gay” bill was passed in The Sunshine State.
I do not have to stray too far from home to find political parallels with Hungary.
In Texas, several laws were recently passed targeting the LGBTQIA+ community that were blatantly anti-trans. New cultural norms continue to sprout, such as drag queens increasingly being threatened and berated. In the past year, books have been taken off the shelves of public libraries. Women’s anatomical rights have been restricted more and more. Medical professionals risk prison sentences for administering abortions. Buoys continue to endanger the lives of asylum-seekers who, in the eyes of Abbott, are pests that have no place in our country. The atrocities in Texas go on and on.
Even at the university level, a homogeneous agenda is seemingly creeping its way on campus through Senate Bill 17, which by the beginning of next year will forbid inclusive offices to provide services to students throughout Texas.
Through all atrocities, I gather a sense of complacency on campus. There is only so much a student, professor or administrator can do when the power is centralized in the hands of one group: the University of Texas System Board of Regents, who just so happen to be nominated and appointed by the governor.
It is difficult for me to not feel like a walking target for political polarization.
As a liberal-minded gay man who was previously undocumented, I’m the poster boy for what conservatives despise. It is just so jarring to realize that I’m a bigger threat to this country, and to this state, than an assault rifle.
