The left’s divisive politics have infected every aspect of our society. It has created a nation where “victim” is the highest status one can achieve. From presidents to professional athletes, no matter how high one may rise in this society, some have an ever-present need to be thought a victim. Never before have we seen the desire to play the victim spread like the cancer it is. “Victim” today is the invisible merit badge that “successful” used to be.

Serena Williams recently had a well-publicized meltdown at the women’s U.S. Open. She cheated, screamed at an umpire, and cost herself a game. Many people came down on her for her sportsmanship, but it didn’t bother me a bit. Sports, like books and movies, are just better with villains. There is a human need to root against something.

If Serena wants to turn a tennis match into WrestleMania, more power to her. The real issue came when Serena went to the podium after losing the match and proclaimed her Tasmanian devil meltdown was her “fighting for women’s rights.” She wasn’t fighting for anything except her right to be a jerk.

Serena has a loving husband and newborn baby. Although she grew up in notoriously rough Compton, California, she rose to the highest levels of athletic achievement and is now worth $180 million. She is the wealthiest female athlete in the history of the world. Her face is on billboards and television commercials.

Most working women cannot afford to take a single day off work in their 24th week of pregnancy. When Serena was in her 24th week of pregnancy, she posed for professional pictures on a yacht. When you crave Italian food, you splurge for Olive Garden. When Serena craves Italian food, her husband throws her on a private jet and flies her to Italy.

Serena Williams is a victim of nothing. She is an American success story. She is, or at least she could be, a bright, shining example of what hard work and perseverance can do. But she’s chosen the path of whiny gender-grifting.

She is certainly not alone in the athletic world. LeBron James is worth $440 million and is arguably the most famous person on planet earth. His entire life is private jets and private chefs. He’ll likely be a billionaire before his career is over.

LeBron is widely considered one of the most gifted athletes to ever live. But there is one title that he still seeks: victimhood. The best player in a professional sports league full of black millionaires once proclaimed about himself that “being black in America is tough.” He said that right before comparing himself to Emmett Till. I’m not joking — the same Emmett Till who was brutally lynched for being black back in 1955.

The rise of the victim class is certainly not reserved for athletes. Look no further than the liberal harpies at the Women’s March. An entire organization has arisen with the sole purpose of convincing American women they are stuck in “systems of oppression.”

The woman living in America in 2018 has a higher standard of living than any woman who has ever lived in the history of the world. But that is simply not enough. To acknowledge how well one has it in America would mean giving up the lucrative grift of convincing women they have it tough.

The ever-burning torch of the Oppression Olympics does not burn this bright without help. Democrats are all too keen on keeping the illusion of strife alive and well. What began with Franklin Delano Roosevelt many decades ago was perfected by Barack Obama, and is now carried on by every leading Democrat in the country. Liberals are so committed to victim politics that Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the likely Democrat nominee for president in 2020, pretended to be a Native American just so the victim train wouldn’t leave town without her.

The left can be explained when you understand these are minds that never grew into adulthood. My kids love to tell me when they’re hurt. A new scraped knee or loose tooth gets them the attention children so desire at all times.

When a child scrapes his knee, what he wants is mommy to come running to pick him up, coddle him, and carry him inside and tell him nothing will ever hurt him again. But what he needs is dad. He needs to be told: “Get up. Suck it up. And get back on the bike.” The coddling feels good. The getting back on the bike helps him grow up.

Some on the right may be tempted to fall into the dangerous trap of playing the left’s victimhood game. “As a black woman …” Do not do it. Let the truth be the truth. Once the truth is dependent on something other than itself, it is vulnerable to be torn down.

Even worse than playing the game ourselves, some on the right think we must surrender the rule-making to the left. The left does not get to determine right from wrong. The left and its media allies do not get to be the arbiters of truth. If someone is attempting to reside in the Elizabeth Warren Victim Teepee, call them out for it. Be bold.

It is our job on the right to be the fathers of America. We must flatly reject the glorification of victimhood. Stop telling the world how oppressed you are. Stop telling everyone what is holding you back, and start telling everyone what you will overcome.

The world cares not for your excuses. Even those liberal politicians don’t care. They simply pretend they care so you will play the useful idiot. Be nobody’s fool. Be nobody’s victim. Be victors.