The Insurrection Attempt: A Reflection of the Insurrection of January 6th
by Alexander Krohannon
January 2022
As alarming as it was to hear and see reports of a civilian lead insurrection, trespassing and occupation of the United States Capitol building; what is perhaps more alarming today is how little attention the event has been paid since then, by everyone within the halls of power.
That’s not to say that those in power are doing nothing: President Biden spoke about it earlier today, the House of Representatives have been running their Congressional Investigation, the infamous January 6th Committee, several politicians from across the political spectrum have used it as a bit for performance theatre for their respective audience, and the FBI have been performing what has become their largest investigation. So those in power are doing something with it, but like many other struggles of the modern day, they’re not facing it.
One year ago, a group of Trump supporters overcame capitol police, broke into and occupied the Capitol Building. They constructed a functional gallows on the grounds. They chanted “Hang Mike Pence!”. They did all these heinous things and more. And to be clear some of them were there with the intention of sparking violent revolution: members of the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, and 3%ers; but for many of them, violence was the means of holding onto life, liberty, and the American way.
As always, violent actions are used for political points by all factions to suit their narratives: Democrats would have these people written off as would-be-revolutionaries and malcontents, and Republicans would have these people held up as patriots and heroes. Both of these narratives ring with truth, but neither is particularly helpful or useful.
The question at hand is not how should we think of this event and the people who participated in it. The question is how and why did this event occur?
Suppose you work at a restaurant, and one day a bunch of the kitchen workers show up to the corporate office demanding the death of the CEO of the company. Something has gone terribly wrong.
Regardless of political affiliation, I largely think we can all agree that if a group of people believe the only way to maintain their country is through the use of violence, something has gone terribly wrong. To that end many people have discussed the likely causes of the insurrection: the polarization of social media, fomenting of the insurrection, regular use of propaganda by media outlets, economic anxiety, fetishization of violence, 50 years of failed domestic economic policy, etc.
Despite the many vials of ink (both digital and physical) spilled over this subject, I ask what have our political leaders done with any of it?
A grossly insufficient amount. Has anyone suggested anything to protect citizen’s right to privacy from data being gathered about them and their children by private companies, to be copied and sold off to any entity: corporate or government for the right price? Has anyone attempted to suggested a viable means of restoring much needed capital to the dying towns and cities across the country? Has any serious attempt been made to stop the next insurrection from occurring? And if the answer to any of those questions is no, can our political leaders really say they take what happened one year ago at the Capitol Building seriously? Have they really put any thought into what did happen, what could have happened, and what may happen if things continue the way they are?
The insurrection attempt performed one year ago today failed. Donald Trump was removed as President, and President Biden was sworn in. But as the past year has shown, things haven’t dramatically improved. The world was not made whole again. Families have not been brought back together. Communities have not healed. The American experiment has not ended. And the 46th American President and the 117th Congress have been given the opportunity to guide this nation and the world to its future destination. One would hope that recognizing just how close they all came to not being given that opportunity, that they might be interested in insuring that the United States of America get to see a 118th, 119th, 120th, etc Congress.