In wake of UnitedHealth CEO’s murder, America’s manifesto writers continue to face stiff PR headwinds
Manifesto writers suffered another public relations uppercut to the chin this week after Luigi Mangione, the alleged murderer of UnitedHealth Group CEO Brian Thompson, was taken into police custody.
Officers nabbed Mangione at a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania, Monday. The suspect had just consumed an addictive substance - a McDonalds hash brown - and had on his person a firearm and a hand-written, 262-word manifesto.
Every alleged criminal is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. But, generally, possession of a manifesto does not portend favorably for the accused party.
A manifesto is written in the United States every 12-and-a-half minutes, the vast majority of which never see the outside of a desk drawer. Nikolas Chatzidakis, President of the Manifesto Writers Guild of America, is trying to change that, working hard to publish and promote more manifestos. Accomplishing that goal has proved challenging, however, in a nation that has grown weary of the men and women who write them.
“It’s an uphill climb, there’s no doubt about that,” Chatzidakis said. “Manifestos are beautiful documents that come from the heart and aim to speak truth to power. So, it’s unfortunate that seemingly the only manifestos people ever hear about are the ones written by heinous criminals. Those individuals spoil it for the whole lot.”
Including for people like Dina Estrada, who recently completed a 48-page screed about how oregano is a dangerous, mind-controlling drug invented by the CIA to make Americans more obedient to the administrative state.
“I poured my heart and soul into that thing,” she said. “The word needs to get out: If you cherish your freedom, stop eating oregano! But then all I see on the TV are people talking about how this wacko murderer in Manhattan also wrote a manifesto. I can only imagine what kind of half-baked propaganda that batshit crazy psychopath believes.”
Chase McKay, 37, of Memphis, said his friendships have been strained since he began writing his manifesto earlier this fall. “I got together with some old college buddies to play cards a few months ago,” he said. “When they asked what I’d been up to, I said that I was working on a manifesto. I haven’t been invited back. And what hurts even more, they never even asked me what it was about.”
Chatzidakis said his biggest hurdle is changing the stereotype of what a manifesto writer looks like. He explained that, when people hear the word “manifesto,” the first person they think of is Ted Kaczynski, a.k.a. the Unabomber, giving the impression that all such writers are ugly and unwashed.
Although Luigi Mangione may be somewhat helpful in the looks department, the fact his manifesto was a paltry 262 words presents another challenge. “Now I fear people will think manifesto writers are lazy, too,” he said.