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The United States FBI defines terrorism as “illegal violence in an attempt to intimidate or force the government, or the civilian population, to pursue political objectives.”
Read more: Requirements for security investigation in Congress
That description is undeniably true of the invasion of the Congress building in Washington on Wednesday night.
But the police at the scene did not consider the extremists a threat of violence.
In photographs and testimonials out of the chaos, an initially friendly atmosphere emerges instead. Police and right-wing extremists take selfies together. They playfully salute with a cheery boxing with their fists. They open the riot fence to facilitate the march of the extremists towards Congress. In a video, the police take a woman by the hand and help her down the congress stairs after the invasion.
We are used to seeing violent police methods when peaceful protesters march through the streets of America.
But when the worst attack on American democracy since the Civil War of 1860 took place in Washington, it was initially greeted with kindness.
But when the worst attack on American democracy since the Civil War of 1860 took place in Washington, it was initially greeted with kindness.
This week’s demo it had been planned weeks in advance, often in open web forums. Several extremists had even printed T-shirts with the text “Civil War: January 6, 2021.” Far-right groups have been touting for months that they are planning violence in Washington, encouraged by Donald Trump and Republicans like Louis Gohmert, who said in December that the election result must be met with “street violence.”
However, the police were not only ill-prepared for the invasion. In many cases, they appeared to cooperate and assist right-wing extremists.
It’s a striking contrast to the brutal violence that US police directed at both minors and retirees during anti-racist protests last year.
Judging from the footage from this week’s congress, it appears that the police not only avoided preventing the invasion, but in several individual cases encouraged and welcomed the extremists.
