The Current Double Standard of the First Amendment
Two major public demonstrations have taken place in Washington since 2020. One of these demonstrations took place with the goal of protecting civil rights for minority groups in America and protesting police brutality, specifically against black Americans. The protesters were armed with signs and spray paint. The other, at the beginning of 2021 brought with it the incitement of violence from a coup that gathered in response to a supposed 'rigged' election. This coup was formed by thousands of armed citizens who intended to invade the United States Capitol building in Washington, D.C., on January 6th, 2021.
Which of the two demonstrations, do you suppose, had over 4,000 National Guardsmen deployed almost immediately after its start? Would you say the prior peaceful protest described, which had no intention of breaking into the U.S. Capitol, warranted this response? Or would you say that this response would have been fitting to address the latter group of insurrectionists, many of whom carried guns and weapons as they made their way into the occupied Capitol Building?
The first protest was one of several demonstrations by the Black Lives Matter movement that took place on June 1st, 2020. On this day, peaceful protestors gathered in Lafayette Square, an area of Washington, D.C., located right in front of the White House. The diverse group of demonstrators gathered with the goal of bringing awareness to police brutality and racial inequality in America. The protests were civil until President Trump ordered an army of federal agents to disperse protestors, at which point things took an unnecessarily violent turn. Tear gas and rubber bullets were deployed against the protesters in a so-called attempt to protect U.S. monuments in the area. For this claimed reason, American men and women supporting the cause were harassed and attacked for practicing their First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and peaceful assembly due to a presidential order.
In contrast, the latter protest took place on Wednesday, January 6th, 2021. Supporters of President Donald Trump forced their way into the Capitol Building with the goal of overturning the 2020 election results through the use of violence and intimidation. Not only did these so-called protesters invade the Capitol Building, they also posed a significant threat to the U.S. government figures inside. Many of these figures, including Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi had to make quick evacuation efforts in order to guarantee their safety from the president’s angry mob of supporters. These individuals were able to freely roam the halls of the Capitol Building, taking commemorative photos and stealing objects along their way. Contrary to popular belief, President Trump denied calls to deploy the National Guard until after the damage had already been done. These rioters, who had every intention of invading government property and intimidating elected officials, entered the Capitol Building with firearms and overwhelmed Capitol police. The Capitol rioters were not met with a fraction of the violence that BLM protestors were met with in June 2020. In fact, some policemen even took selfies with the rioters as they stormed the building past multiple security checkpoints.
The BLM protestors were labeled as an immediate threat by the President, who made direct orders to “protect government property." Yet, when government property had actually been under attack by his very own supporters, the President failed to deploy the National Guard and declined to take other preventative actions.
What exactly is the difference between these two groups? Why is it that one group of people are treated as if they are terrorists, while the other, who actually fit this description, are able to walk away unscathed? Clearly, there is a major double standard when it comes to how some Americans are able to exercise their First Amendment rights in this country compared to others.
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