Ground Zero for Being Told Up is Down: The Bernie Goetz Shootings
Fri Feb 06 2026
Today, Professor Heather Ann Thompson explains how a subway shooting in 1984 became the blueprint for vigilante violence in America, from George Zimmerman to Kyle Rittenhouse to ICE.
In Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, the Bernie Goetz Shootings, and the Rebirth of White Rage, Professor Thompson traces how Bernie Goetz shot four Black teenagers on a New York subway in late 1984—then became a hero. Goetz confessed to the shootings on tape, eyewitnesses corroborated his account, and a jury let him off anyway. Professor Thompson’s argument? To understand Goetz’s acquittal, you have to understand Reagan’s deliberate gutting of the safety net, the rise of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire, and a cultural shift from empathy to criminalization. As she shows, Goetz’s case is “ground zero” for a landscape where the president, the right-wing media, and, sometimes, The New York Times say up is down.
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Today, Professor Heather Ann Thompson explains how a subway shooting in 1984 became the blueprint for vigilante violence in America, from George Zimmerman to Kyle Rittenhouse to ICE. In Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, the Bernie Goetz Shootings, and the Rebirth of White Rage, Professor Thompson traces how Bernie Goetz shot four Black teenagers on a New York subway in late 1984—then became a hero. Goetz confessed to the shootings on tape, eyewitnesses corroborated his account, and a jury let him off anyway. Professor Thompson’s argument? To understand Goetz’s acquittal, you have to understand Reagan’s deliberate gutting of the safety net, the rise of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire, and a cultural shift from empathy to criminalization. As she shows, Goetz’s case is “ground zero” for a landscape where the president, the right-wing media, and, sometimes, The New York Times say up is down. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit skippedhistory.substack.com/subscribe