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Hare & Bell Writing Contest Writing Center

2021

Right-Wing Terrorism in America through the Lens of the Capitol Right-Wing Terrorism in America through the Lens of the Capitol

Riot Riot

Nathan Lucas

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Recommended Citation Recommended Citation

Right-Wing Terrorism in America through the Lens of the Capitol Riot

Nathan Lucas

On the morning of January 6th, 2021 a mob of supporters of outgoing President Donald

Trump stormed the Capitol building during the process of congressional certification of the

results of the 2020 presidential election. While the incident failed to halt the certification for

anything more than a few hours, it still represents a seismic shift in American politics. For the

majority of American history, the threat of a politically charged mob enticed by an outgoing

president storming Congress was unthinkable, something that happened in other countries.

However, the rise and normalization of extreme far right-wing views and associated acts of terror

response to the covid-19 pandemic. Despite facing defeat in the election, former President Trump

as well as many supporters refused to concede the loss claiming, counter to the assertions of

many experts both before and after the election, that the election had been “stolen” by

Democratic candidate Joe Biden. Despite multiple lawsuits contesting the validity of the results

as well as attempts to overturn the results through the state legislatures the results of the election

would be certified in the individual states and electors appointed (Whittington). This would not,

however, stop the attempts of the Trump campaign to subvert the election, leading to several

lawsuits ultimately dismissed by the Supreme Court, most notably Kelly, Mike, et al. vs

Pennsylvania et al. Texas vs Pennsylvania et al, dismissed December 8th and December 11th

respectively (Cummings et al.).

The events of January 6th began with a politically charged crowd of Trump supporters

converging near the White House. The situation was already politically volatile, not only due to

the scheduled confirmation of the presidential election results but due to the recently confirmed

results of the Georgia senate runoffs, handing control of the Senate to the democratic party. It is

into this politically hypercharged environment that President Trump delivered a long-winded

speech, largely composed of repeatedly disproven rhetoric regarding the validity of the election.

By one in the afternoon a crowd of protestors had begun to gather at the capitol building, joined

continued to tweet various falsehoods regarding the integrity of the election. It is from this time

that the most haunting pictures of the riot were taken. The images of rioters draped in three kinds

of flags: American, Confederate, and Trump; storming the halls of American democracy served

to evoke comparisons with the fall of Rome. The violence and demonstrations were not limited

to the Capitol, with protests in Austin, Denver, Minneapolis, and most notably the Michigan

Capitol building, as well as threats against Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (Shelly

Tan et al.). Pipe bombs were discovered at both the RNC and DNC offices, now known to be

planted the night before (Shortell). As violence continued and the Capitol Police continued to

struggle to contain the mob, leading to calls to deploy the national guard, it was only on the

orders of Vice President Mike Pence, not Donald Trump, that the national guard was finally

deployed and the situation contained, allowing Congress to resume their work (Cooper et al.).

While it is easy and perhaps comforting to view the events of January 6th as an isolated

event, a coda to the troubled Trump presidency, it is instead the culmination of years of political

change. Throughout most of the latter half of the 20th century in America, the majority of

domestic terrorism originated from leftist groups, according to the FBI this would shift during

the 1980s, with law enforcement finding great success in dismantling these organizations

(Watson). In the following decades, right-wing terrorism became more prevalent in the United

subset of the conservative movement known as the New Right (NR) emerged, representing a

coalition of various right-wing groups, including free-market enthusiasts, libertarians, and social

conservatives (Blee 272). The NR movement would consist largely of grassroots action, as

opposed to more centrally managed movements. In contrast, American right-wing groups are

predominately overtly white supremacist and often anti-semitic, these movements include

historic groups such as the KKK and neo-nazi groups, as well as more modern groups (Blee

272).

An examination of contemporary right-wing terror organizations finds a broad collection

of white supremacist and anti-semitic organizations. One of the most well-known of these

groups, especially in the aftermath of the Capitol riot, is the Proud Boys. The Proud Boys were

founded in 2016 by Gavin McInnes, co-founder of VICE media. The group describes themselves

as “Western Chauvinists” and deny any connection to the alt-right or other racist movements.

Despite this denial of white supremacy, the group has been involved in many overtly racist

events, including the 2017 “Unite the Right” movement in Charlottesville, organized by Jason

Kessler, a member of the Proud Boys (“Proud Boys”). The Proud Boys were also involved in the

Capitol riot, with multiple high-ranking members facing conspiracy charges (Feuer and Robles).

The denial of white-supremacist views by the Proud Boys falls apart when we examine

joining the military or law enforcement organizations, where the Oath Keepers conduct most of

their recruitment. The group traffics in traditional anti-government conspiracy theories, including

theories of a “New World Order” and martial law (Oath Keepers). The group has also been

involved in multiple instances of criminal activity, including possession of explosives,

possession of illegal firearms (including grenade launchers), and an attempt to arrest officials

who had refused to bring charges against then-President Obama (The Oath Keepers).

While the use of retired law enforcement officers and veterans as a recruitment base for

the Oath Keepers, Proud Boys, and other groups are cause for concern, more disturbing is the

infiltration of law enforcement with active members of these groups. Police organizations in

America have a long history of racial issues, issues brought to prominence through the Black

Lives Matter movement. Recent statements by Michael German, a former FBI special agent,

have brought to light the infiltration of law enforcement organizations by white supremacist

groups. A report published by German details the widespread links between police and white

supremacist groups, including cooperation between the Sacramento Police Department and

neo-nazi groups against anti-racist advocates, police officers in Chicago seen wearing far-right

symbols, and police in Philadelphia seen allowing right-wing groups to attack protestors (Levin).

quick favorite for people associated with white supremacist groups. In February of 2016 David

Duke, a former high ranking member of the KKK, endorsed Donald Trump stating “voting

against Donald Trump at this point is really treason to your heritage”, a clear talking point of

far-right groups, particularly from the mouth of a former klansman (Hafner). In August of 2017

Trump supporters were prevalent among those chanting “Jews will not replace us” at the earlier

mentioned “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville Virginia (Levin and Guenther). In response

to this rally as well as the murder of a counter-protestor President Trump uttered the now

infamous line “There were very fine people on both sides”, drawing outrage and condemnation

(Holan). The Proud Boys received major national attention after the first presidential debate of

the 2020 election, during which President Trump, when asked to denounce white supremacist

groups and the Proud Boys specifically issued a tepid request that they “stand back and stand

by”, a remark cheered on by members, including the group’s leader, Enrique Tarrio, who took it

as a message to continue what they were doing, an ominous warning of the future riots

(Murphy).

By examining the evidence it is clear that the events of January 6th, 2021 were far more

than an over-enthusiastic crowd or an out-of-control protest. The events constitute a riot, perhaps

even an attempted coup, tacitly endorsed and encouraged by former President Trump and led by

country, lest the American democracy we cherish be allowed to perish from the earth.

Works Cited

Blee, Kathleen M., and Kimberly A. Creasap. “Conservative and Right-Wing Movements.”

Cummings, William et al. “By the numbers: President Donald Trump's failed efforts to overturn

2021/01/06/trumps-failed-efforts-overturn-election-numbers/4130307001/. Accessed 28

March 2021.

Feuer, Alan and Frances Robles. “Proud Boys Under Growing Scrutiny in Capitol Riot

Investigation.” New York Times, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/26/us/proud-boys

-capitol-riot.html. Accessed 28 March 2021

German, Michael. “Hidden in Plain Sight: Racism, White Supremacy, and Far-Right Militancy in

Law Enforcement”. Brenna Center, https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-

reports/hidden-plain-sight-racism-white-supremacy-and-far-right-militancy-law.

Accessed 26 March 2021.

Hafner, Josh. “Former Ku Klux Klan leader declares support for Donald Trump”. USA Today,

Times, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/28/opinion/white-power-and-the-fear-of-

Replacement.html. Accessed 25 March 2021.

Levin, Sam. “White supremacists and militias have infiltrated police across US, report says”.

The Guardian, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/aug/27/white-supremacists-

Militias-infiltrate-us-police-report. Accessed 26 March 2021.

Murphy, Paul P. “Trump’s debate callout bolsters far-right Proud Boys”. CNN,

https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/30/politics/proud-boys-trump-debate-trnd/index.html.

Accessed 26 March 2021

“Oath Keepers” Southern Poverty Law Center, https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist

-files/group/oath-keepers. Accessed 26 March 2021.

Shortell, David. “Pipe bombs found near Capitol on January 6 were placed the night before, FBI

bombs-dnc-rnc/index.html. Accessed 29 March 2021.

The Washington Post, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/interactive/2021/capitol-

insurrection-visual-timeline/. Accessed 29 March 2021.

Defamation League, 2015

The Terrorist Threat Confronting the United States, 107th Cong. (2002) (testimony of Dale L

work” The Washington Post, https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/11/20/