Since 2015, white supremacists in several states, especially members of the Texas-based white supremacist group Aryan Renaissance Society, have promoted the slogan “White Lives Matter” with flyers and protests, forming a loose campaign to popularize the phrase.
More than eight in ten Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (85%) express at least some support, including 48% who strongly support the movement. In contrast, most Republicans and those who lean to the GOP (78%) say they oppose the Black Lives Matter movement, with 58% saying they strongly oppose it, according to a poll by Pew Research.
The Attack On The Capitol
On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., was stormed by supporters of then President Donald J. Trump. This unprecedented event aimed to disrupt the certification of the 2020 presidential election results, in which Joe Biden was declared the winner.
The political right tends to view the people who orchestrated the attack, who were later prosecuted for their actions, as political hostages. The political left views the orchestrators of the attack as insurrectionists who attempted to overthrow the results of a free and fair election.
These assertions galvanized many of his supporters to gather in Washington, D.C., on the day Congress was set to certify the Electoral College results. During a rally near the White House, President Trump addressed the crowd, urging them to march to the Capitol to “peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard” but also to “show strength” and “fight like hell.”
The Rally Begins
At a rally organized by Trump at a public park adjacent to the White House, thousands gathered, including individuals affiliated with paramilitary groups and various right-wing extremists. They listened to speeches from Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and his sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, among others.
In his address, which commenced around noon, Trump reiterated familiar false claims and conspiracy theories regarding the alleged stolen election. He urged Vice President Pence to obstruct Congress’s certification of the electoral college vote, asserting that if Pence did not intervene, the rally attendees would not permit the confirmation to proceed, stating, “We’re just not going to let that happen.” He encouraged the crowd to march down Pennsylvania Avenue towards the Capitol and implored them to “fight like hell” or risk losing their country.
The Breach of the Capitol
Before Trump concluded his speech shortly after 1:00 PM, as Congress was convening, a mob of his supporters—including members of extremist groups like the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, and Three Percenters, as well as self-identified followers of the QAnon conspiracy—breached the barriers at the Capitol’s western perimeter, forcing Capitol Police to retreat to more secure positions.
The crowd swelled as more individuals arrived from the rally, overwhelming the Capitol Police, who were bolstered by reinforcements from the Metropolitan Police Department. Many officers faced brutal assaults with lethal weapons such as bats, pipes, and flagpoles, were subjected to chemical irritants, or were crushed and trampled by the advancing mob.
By around 2:00 pm, the protesters had effectively overstepped the last defense on the western side of the Capitol, making their way up the stairs and scaling the walls of the West Terrace. At the same time, another faction had also breached the defenses on the eastern side of the Capitol. Shortly after 2:00 pm, the rioters shattered windows to access the western part of the building.