“Dear White Staffers”, an Instagram account that blew up just a couple of years ago for reporting alleged mistreatment of staff on Capitol Hill, is now under fire from some members of the progressive left for allegedly engaging in performative activism.
The account joined Instagram in 2020 and quickly built a reputation for being a place where congressional staffers could anonymously share horror stories about their offices and dissuade others from joining toxic work environments. The account has more than 100,000 followers and is closely watched by members of Congress — and now the Biden administration, as White House employees have started making their own submissions to the “Dear White Staffers” DMs.
In addition to sharing submissions, “Dear White Staffers” engages in activism, posting in support of a union for congressional staff and, more recently, in favor of a ceasefire in Gaza. After Aaron Bushnell self-immolated in front of the Israeli Embassy in an effort to “free Palestine,” “Dear White Staffers” shared an anonymous statement from Biden administration staffers praising the airman’s actions.
“Self-immolation as an act of protest is widely recognized as the most extreme form of protest possible — to publicly end a person’s own life in the most violent and severe way is a stark warning for our nation,” the statement read. “We continue to call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire… President Biden, our commander-in-chief, continues to ignore staff dissent.”
But the comments on the post didn’t reflect the encouragement and support for White House staff that has been typical on the account since Israel launched its counteroffensive against Hamas. Instead, some followers angrily wondered why Biden staffers continued to release statements rather than leave their jobs.
“Why haven’t they all walked off the job yet? I’m confused,” said one comment with nearly 500 likes.
“We need more than statements — RESIGN!! DISRUPT!! DO SOMETHING TODAY!!!!” said another with almost 100 likes.
A third added, “Why are they still in the administration? Why not have a wildcat strike or use your intelligence to assist direct actions? Statements like this seem to just assuage the person making the statement, no?”
The frustration at “Dear White Staffers” and the apparent uselessness of its self-proclaimed “shitposting” is not exclusive to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Angry commenters blasted the account for encouraging followers to write in “Uncommitted” in today’s Michigan primary in protest against President Joe Biden as the Democratic Party nominee.
“This is incredibly misguided. How many your love body autonomy!? Democracy? You actually think Trumph will be better ? Wait until he inacts another travel ban,” a top comment, spelling errors and all, said.
Another with almost 200 likes demanded to know, “How does this help?”
Might this be a warning to the terminally online left that you reap what you sow? When your primary business is internet activism, there’s always going to be someone with more time on their hands behind the keyboard.
