Four Years After the Capitol Riots: Continuing Political Turmoil and Violence in the US
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Washington, Jan 7 (NationPress) In a historic event, supporters of Donald Trump breached the Capitol in a failed effort to hinder the peaceful transfer of presidential power to Joe Biden. This incident has left a lasting mark on US history.
Since that day, more than 1,500 individuals have faced criminal charges in federal courts. Trump, who previously referred to the rioters as "great patriots", has vowed to pardon them on his initial day in office, as reported by the Xinhua news agency citing Time magazine.
Now, four years later, the nation grapples with persistent political polarization and violence.
A 2024 Gallup report indicates that 80 percent of American adults perceive the country as profoundly divided on fundamental values, marking an increase from 77 percent in 2016 and over 10 percentage points higher than earlier metrics from 2004 and 2012.
The term "polarisation" was designated the word of the year for 2024 by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, while a 2023 Pew Research Center survey revealed that the term "divisive" is most often used to describe contemporary US politics.
Additional findings from Pew show that 64 percent of Americans consider the divide between Republicans and Democrats a "major problem", with both factions viewing the other as a significant threat to the nation's welfare.
As divisions deepen, incidents of political violence have surged throughout the US in recent years.
In October 2022, a man invaded the residence of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in San Francisco and assaulted her husband with a hammer. In June 2023, a defendant from the January 6 events was apprehended while attempting to break into the home of former President Barack Obama.
In August 2023, an armed individual accused of threatening President Biden was killed during an FBI operation in Utah.
Moreover, in July 2024, an attempted assassination of Trump during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, startled the nation.
From 2022 to 2023, the Department of Justice took legal action against 27 threats made against members of Congress, according to Foreign Policy.
This wave of political violence has not only targeted leaders but also affected ethnic minorities. Recent years have witnessed mass shootings across various communities in the US. For instance, a racially motivated hate crime in New York in 2022 resulted in the deaths of 10 African Americans at the hands of a gunman.
Violent protests from both the right and left have exacerbated societal divisions. After the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in October 2023, incidents of anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim sentiments surged.
Approximately 18 percent of Americans believe that political violence could be justified to "save" the country, up from 15 percent in 2021, according to the 2024 American Values Survey released by the Public Religion Research Institute.
Looking forward, a third of US adults express minimal confidence in the nation’s future, based on a Pew Research Center report from 2023.
"Imagine how polarised the country will be when our president talks about extremes? This of course affects each of us individually. Our democracy is being harmed. So I think the next four years would be worse," expressed Alieen Breadley, a designer based in New York City.
