Douglas Blair: If You Don’t Buy Conservative Art, Ruthless Leftists Will Ensure Nobody Can

A world in which the left has almost total control of the cultural landscape, it can feel like trying to find an endangered species by finding an openly conservative artist. The left, unfortunately, is always on the hunt, just like poachers in a jungle. 

While leftist artists can openly spew their bile for the world to hear, conservatives must be careful not to say anything that might expose them, lest they attract the woke mob’s notice.

When I saw a Kickstarter project for a set of cards for the popular trading game, I was reminded just how quickly a conservative career could end. “Magic: the Gathering.” Nils Hamm, a prolific artist from early in the game’s history, had created a series of cards for the game, two of which were collaborations with Canadian artist Seb McKinnon. 

McKinnon was criticized last year during the Canadian “Freedom Convoy” Truck drivers protested in Ottawa to demand the end of the Covid-19 tyrannical policies. The artist posted the following: Instagram Support the protesters and said “the media and politicians are trying to paint this as ‘anti-vax’ and ‘white supremacist.’”

The media reported that protesters blocked traffic and prevented Ottawaans from getting around the city. This was not true. Debunked. 

“I am compelled to speak out and voice that what is going on in this country is NOT RIGHT,” McKinnon continued. “I choose love over fear. And for the first time in a long time, I feel hope.”

His praise for the truckers prompted calls for his head. Some “Magic: the Gathering” McKinnon was canceled because players were upset that McKinnon would disagree with the despotic Covid mandates. 

The woke-catchers had every reason for believing they would succeed. They’d done it before.

Terese Nielson was another artist who enjoyed the game. She was fired because she supported Donald Trump and did not follow the lines on transgenderism. Leftist stalkers revealed Nielsen had been following right-wing personalities and outlets such as Jack Posobiec, Infowars and Mike Cernovich and liked and retweeted numerous posts in support of the former President.

Doug Beyer is the principal game designer of the worldbuilding project. “Magic: the Gathering,” admitted, “We haven’t commissioned new art from Terese Nielsen in quite a while.”

And so the cycle goes. Leftists become displeased with the publicly stated views of a conservative, pressure their place of employment to fire them, and will harass them until they do so. Conservatives in the public square are meticulously hunted down and exterminated.

So what is to be done? Are we to lie down and accept a fate of utter decimation in a world of inane, woke art? Of course not. Conservatives are creative and talented, but we are at a disadvantage. We cannot rely on the wider culture to support us and our work. Therefore, we must do it ourselves.

In an interview with conservative artist George Alexopoulos, he told me artists on the right are “scared of losing [their] careers” and that “there has to be a sign that it’s OK to be a conservative creator.”

He’s right. There need to be incentives for conservative artists to create art. Otherwise, they’ll continue to be obliterated from the market one by one. Or worse, they’ll hide their views from the world at large, leading people to believe conservatives just can’t create art at all.

Either way, the only strategy to ensure conservative arts and artists survive is to actively and financially support them. It’s not enough to simply tweet support or give positive feedback, though that’s better than nothing. Instead, conservatives must put their money where their mouths are and purchase and consume explicitly conservative art. Things like art and culture matter immensely to how people view themselves. It’s essential we hold the line and not lose yet another institution to the radical left.

Conservative artists are already an endangered species. We shouldn’t let them go extinct.

Douglas Blair is a producer and special correspondent with “O’Connor Tonight” on the Salem News Channel.