POLITICAL TRAUMA BONDING: HOW THE OPPRESSED LEARN TO LOVE THEIR OPPRESSORS
POLITICAL TRAUMA BONDING: HOW THE OPPRESSED LEARN TO LOVE THEIR OPPRESSORS
By KL Stubblefield
They call it patriotism.
They call it loyalty.
But in reality, it's bondage.
Deep, manipulative, generational bondage.
And most of us don’t even know we’re in it.
This is political trauma bonding—the psychological and spiritual phenomenon where oppressed people become emotionally tethered to the very systems, leaders, and ideologies that exploit them.
Like the battered woman who defends her abuser, the colonized who defend their colonizer, the citizen who praises their captor—we see trauma masquerading as loyalty.
And the state smiles.
THE ANATOMY OF THE BOND
Trauma bonding isn’t new. It’s just been institutionalized.
Here’s how it works: the system harms you, ignores your cries, blames you for your condition, then throws you a symbolic bone—just enough to keep you compliant. A speech, a stimulus check, a seat at the table, a holiday, a hashtag, a prayer breakfast.
And suddenly, the oppressed begin to say, “Maybe it’s not so bad.”
“Maybe they care.”
“Maybe if we just vote harder, protest louder, comply faster…”
This is emotional manipulation on a national scale—a toxic cocktail of fear, dependency, and conditioned loyalty.
THE PSYCHOLOGICAL PRISON
Like classic trauma bonding, political trauma bonding thrives on intermittent reinforcement—unpredictable cycles of reward and punishment that rewire the brain to associate abuse with affection.
A president signs a criminal justice bill while expanding the police state.
A nation celebrates "freedom" while caging immigrants and watching Black bodies drop in the streets.
Religious leaders endorse candidates who mock their values, but promise them “a seat at the king’s table.”
And so the people defend policies that destroy them, leaders that ignore them, and systems that enslave them—all while singing the national anthem.
THE SPIRITUAL STRONGHOLD
This isn’t just political—it’s demonic.
Because the state has become god.
And Caesar now sits in the sanctuary.
Entire churches have traded the cross for the flag.
Preachers prophesy victories for candidates whose fruit reeks of corruption.
Propaganda is baptized. And oppression is framed as “order.”
Like Israel longing to return to Egypt...
Like the people shouting “We have no king but Caesar!”…
We have mistaken bondage for blessing.
This is idolatry, not identity.
TRAUMA AS NATIONAL IDENTITY
For many, trauma bonding is all they’ve ever known.
Born into poverty, yet loyal to the systems that maintain it.
Racially profiled, yet voting for law-and-order candidates.
Exploited by capitalism, yet defending billionaires.
Spiritually manipulated, yet tithing to temples of empire.
Why? Because trauma, when unhealed, becomes identity.
If you were never allowed to dream of true freedom, false freedom becomes holy.
If the boot has always been on your neck, you might start defending the boot.
HOW TO BREAK THE BOND
Breaking political trauma bonds is not just a mental act—it’s a deliverance.
Expose the Lie
Recognize the system for what it is—not what it claims to be. Propaganda must be stripped bare.Reclaim Identity
You are not your trauma. You are not your party. You are not your oppression. You are image and breath and brilliance.Repent of Idolatry
No politician is your savior. No policy is your gospel. Return to the Kingdom that cannot be shaken.Detox from the Narrative
Unplug. Fast from the 24-hour trauma news cycle. Cut off the emotional addiction to outrage and hope-porn.Proclaim a New Exodus
Like Moses before Pharaoh, we must declare with courage and clarity:
“Let my people go.”
Let them go from spiritual slavery, ideological manipulation, generational trauma, and false allegiances.
A FINAL WORD
Political trauma bonding is not just a concept—it’s a curse.
But it can be broken.
Not by policy alone. Not by reform.
But by prophetic truth, spiritual courage, and the power of collective awakening.
It’s time to break the bond.
It’s time to dismantle the delusion.
It’s time to remember:
We were never meant to serve Pharaoh.
KELVIN L. STUBBLEFIELD IS A GRADUATE OF Middle Tennessee State University IN 1983.
HE IS THE AUTHOR OF “AMERICAN REPROBATE: GOD'S CURSE AND RESTORATION OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN”. THAT WAS PUBLISHED IN 2012.
HE AND HIS WIFE SANDRIA, CO-FOUNDED “BIGSTUB CREATIONS” IN 2018. We are a vehicle for creativity! Our mission is to encourage individuals to utilize their artistic expression through the performing arts.
He has recently published his second book in November 2023.
STAYING HUMAN: EXAMINING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GOD, MAN AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE”.
Biblical, Spiritual, and Social Analysis and Solutions to Black Americans and Mainstream AMERICAN Dysgenics, Narcissistic Self Indulgence, and the Current Politics of Self Annihilation. Amidst the dawning of Artificial General intelligence and Trans-Humanity.
YOU CAN PURCHASE HIS PUBLICATIONS OR LEARN ABOUT OUR NEXT PROJECT; YOU CAN VISIT THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES.
https://www.klstubblefield.com/
https://www.bigstubcreations.com/
https://loveintheblack.blogspot.com/
https://lovingmyhumans.blogspot.com
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