Capitol Riot

Proud Boys' Convictions for Seditious Conspiracy Won't End the Far Right Threat

by Tom Mockaitis

Despite the conviction of leading organizers of the January 6 attack on the Capitol (which aimed at overturning Joe Biden's election), the extreme right will remain a threat, partly because of the flourishing of online channels for hate and partly because the Republican Party has framed the insurrection as legitimate political expression. 

The Real Failures of January 6

by Karen J. Greenberg

Despite surface similarities, the attack on Brazil's government buildings earlier this month differed from January 6, 2021 in one key respect: the transfer of presidential power had already been accomplished. The contrast is sobering—for America. 

The Dangerous Misunderstanding of America's History of Mob Action

by Stefan Lund

Contrary to the protestations of January 6th apologists, mob action in America has usually worked to suppress, rather than defend, democracy.

Simon Balto: January 6 Not an Anomaly in American History

"Americans need to understand that what the terrorists at the Capitol did that day wasn’t the anomaly people think it was within the long history of the United States."

NC Elections Board Affirms it has Power to Bar Rep. Cawthorn from Ballot over Jan. 6 Actions

Without stating whether such action would proceed, North Carolina's elections authority affirmed that it has the power to bar Rep. Madison Cawthorn from seeking reelection if his actions on January 6 are determined to amount to support for insurrection. 

The Islamophobia of Domestic Security and the Capitol Insurrection

by Juan Cole

Perhaps if the FBI hadn't been spending the last 20 years spying on American Muslims the organizing of white Christian nationalists leading to to the January 6 assault on the Capitol would't have been an apparent surprise to the authorities. 

Patrick Henry and the Defense of Democracy

by John A. Ragosta

Patrick Henry has become a hero of the Tea Party and the January 6 insurrectionists. But his famous demand for liberty or death doesn't capture his personal commitments to liberty under the rule of law and acceptance of the outcomes of elections. 

Meacham, Goodwin: Threat to Democracy is Dire

“We have to retell the story of what happened on January 6, with all of the gaps filled in,” Goodwin said. “And I do believe that a line will be drawn.”

One if by Land, Two if by Sea, and Three if by the Capitol Steps

by Elise Lemire

On the first anniversary of the Capitol attack, and the 162nd of Longfellow's poetic canonization of the Boston patriot, Paul Revere's ride remains a contested and protean symbol for a nation in crisis. 

Braveheart: President Donald J. Trump

by Kristin Kobes Du Mez

Following the threads of religion and nationalism that form the unlikely comparison between Trump and Mel Gibson's (heavily mythologized) Scottish movie hero. 

Should Canadians be Preparing for the Collapse of U.S. Democracy?

by Thomas Homer-Dixon

"The country is becoming increasingly ungovernable, and some experts believe it could descend into civil war. How should Canada prepare?"

Why Didn't January 6 Force Moderation on the Republicans?

"So there was a moment after January 6, where it seemed like the right was ready to disown Trump. They were ready to disown everybody who was involved in January 6. And for all kinds of reasons that was a very brief window that didn’t last."

A Presidential Campaign Pledge Can Right Wrongs of an Infamous Day

by Nicholas Mosvick and Craig Bruce Smith

Following the examples of our first two presidents, 2024's candidates must pledge themselves to honor a peaceful transition of power. 

Kathleen Belew: Is Trump Laying Groundwork for a 2024 Coup?

Historian Kathleen Belew joins Hari Sreenivasan and Bill Moyers to discuss a new documentary, "Preserving Democracy." 

Militias Were Hiding in Plain Sight Before 1/6. They're Still a Threat

by Kathleen Belew

The January 6 attack on the Capitol and the election results was not a one-off coup attempt; it was a recruitment event for the militant far right which increasingly threatens democracy.

A Year Later: Our Tattered and Fragile Democracy

by James D. Zirin

American political institutions face a crisis: can they defend themselves against a growing movement that will deploy violence to achieve its goals, or will January 6 become the new normal? 

Worst Isn't Over for Political Violence in Rhetoric or Action

by Joanne Freeman

"Here’s the problem, and it’s foreboding: If a line is crossed, and the occasion passes unacknowledged, was there really a line?"

D.C. Attorney General to Sue Proud Boys, Oath Keepers for Role in January 6 Assault

"The lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., cites the modern version of an 1871 law known as the Ku Klux Klan Act, which was enacted after the Civil War to safeguard government officials carrying out their duties and protect civil rights."

Joanne Freeman: Violent Rhetoric in Congress is Meant to Intimidate Enemies Into Silence

"I suppose that’s what we’re going to see now; the person who does that kind of bullying and that kind of threatening gets a good degree of support for it."

Right-Wing Ideologues Turn Aggressors Into Victims

by Waitman Wade Beorn

"Allowing the right to weave pernicious counternarratives and to create saints from sinners will only embolden future Ashli Babbitts and spawn more violence. "