In the United States, There Can Be No Reconciliation without Acknowledgement of the Facts

In his column “Reconciling Americans?” published Jan. 22, 2021, Christian Rioux presents a road map for the reconciliation of the United States. Here is my response.

First, Christian Rioux suggests that the media and members of the Democratic Party exaggerated the severity of the events of Jan. 6, 2021. The use of hyperbole would constitute a barrier to reconciliation and an eventual unification of the country since these demonstrators were simply “carnival characters.”

Contrary to Rioux’s claims, the insurrectionists who attacked the Capitol, directly encouraged by their president who was giving a speech nearby, specifically aimed to overturn the election results by stopping and reversing the certification of the electoral vote. The aim was also to kidnap and murder members of Congress.

Indeed, while the attack on the Capitol appeared disorganized and the average IQ of the demonstrators appeared to be close to the number of administrative regions in Quebec, investigations revealed that the attack had been rigorously planned for several months on platforms such as Reddit, TheDonald.win, Telegram and Parler. Many participants were openly discussing the tools needed to break down doors and methods to camouflage their firearms all the way to Washington, D.C.

During the attack, many protesters shouted, “Hang Mike Pence!” as gallows were being built outside the Capitol. One individual dropped pipe bombs outside the offices of the Republican and Democratic Parties. Many protesters beat Brian Sicknick, a Capitol police officer, to death. A recent NPR article reported that 20% of the indicted individuals were active soldiers or veterans of the U.S. military, even though they represent only 4% of the U.S. population. These individuals were not lost tourists. They were trained to kill.

And Donald Trump’s response to this attack? “Go home, we love you, you’re very special.”

This attack was not the result of the disorganized frustration of disenfranchised individuals. It was an attempted insurrection organized by violent individuals, white supremacists and extreme right-wing militiamen.

Second, Rioux implies that the Republican electorate is “a victim of globalization” and that the Democrats are the party of the elite, which would ultimately contribute to a sense of disdain by the elite toward Republicans.

Whether Rioux likes it or not, Republicans tend to be wealthier than Democrats. Joe Biden received 57% support from those earning less than $50,000 a year, while 54% of those earning over $100,000 supported Trump. While those working in polluting industries such as coal mining and hydraulic fracturing supported Trump to preserve their jobs, the argument surrounding economic anxiety as a factor in supporting Trump simply does not hold water.

Many researchers have studied the phenomenon. Research conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute after the 2016 election identifies fears of “cultural displacement” by the white working class in the United States as a major factor in support for Trump. A study by Amherst College identified racist and sexist attitudes as central factors in Americans’ election decisions. Finally, a study by the National Academy of Sciences in April 2018 showed that the regions that supported Trump showed no signs of economic decline.

It is the perceived victimization of white Americans, who felt that whites were more discriminated against than African Americans, that Christians were more discriminated against than Muslims and that men were more discriminated against than women, which explains support for Trump.

Uniting the country will be a monumental task for Biden. Recent polls showed that 56% of Republicans say they believe “in whole or in part” in the QAnon conspiracy that the Democrats have an underground network of child rapists, while 72% of Republican voters continue to question the election results and 82% of Republicans still support Trump, despite his disastrous response to COVID-19 and his actions on Jan. 6, 2021.

Biden will have his work cut out for him in uniting the country and healing the deep wounds inflicted on the United States.

But to heal, a proper diagnosis must be made. There can be no reconciliation without an acknowledgment of the facts. No unity without truth.

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Rioux’s Response:

Victor Hugo wrote, “There is such a thing as an uprising, and there is such a thing as insurrection; these are two separate phases of wrath … the war of the whole against the fraction is insurrection; the attack of the fraction against the whole is revolt.” To make an Arab Spring or a Paris Commune, it takes more than being armed, having criminal intentions or belonging to extreme right-wing groups. Insurrection is a mass phenomenon. Never have the Capitol mutineers enjoyed real popular support. On Jan. 20, when the new president was sworn in, there was not a soul there. As for a coup attempt, that does not happen without support from the state, the police, or the army. Support that the fanatics on Capitol Hill have never had.

Beyond the moral criteria that apply to all of us, Trump’s electorate is not so much distinguished by its income as it is by its poor education and its distance from the major globalized areas. Part of its victory played out in states that had suffered from deindustrialization. The Buy American Act, which makes Biden even more of a protectionist than Trump, shows that winning back these states is how he secured his victory, and that he will be able to unite his fellow citizens. Certainly not by calling them “sexist,” “racist” and … “insurrectionist” (!). As Albert Camus said, ” To name things wrongly is to add to the misfortune of the world.”