JAN 6 ATTACK ON CAPITOL

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University of Phoenix *

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Philosophy

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Jun 19, 2024

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docx

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January 6 th Capitol Attack University of Phoenix Stephanie Lugo CPSS/316 Greggus Yahr June 10,2024
In the months prior to January 6 th after Trump lost the election to Joe Biden, he posted on his then social media account formerly known as Twitter; “Peter Navarro releases 36-page report alleging election fraud 'more than sufficient' to swing victory to Trump https://t.co/D8KrMHnFdK. A great report by Peter. Statistically impossible to have lost the 2020 Election. Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!” (Dreisbach, 2022). It was these words that encouraged countless supporters across the nation to travel to Washington D.C. and storm the Capitol in protest of his loss and false accusations of a fraudulent election. Multiple individuals who were criminally charged for their involvement stated that had he not written that on twitter and had he not encouraged them to show up and show out that they wouldn’t have even been at the Capitol that day. We’re talking about multiple people from different areas, and different militia groups all tied together under the belief that President Trump falsely lost the election, and that democrats were behind the rigged outcome. Groupthink becomes a larger issue when you have countless individuals with no critical thinking skills and extremely close minded to others’ opinions, that can all be influenced by one individual. When I think of groupthink I think of cults. Such as the followers of Charles Manson. One individual who influenced countless others to commit murders. President Trump, whether knowingly or unknowingly influenced others to commit criminal acts. These individuals lacked self-awareness in the moment participating together as a group to storm the Capitol. This is also known as Deindividuation. As some have stated, they regret their behaviors in the moment doing things they never would have normally done. (Myers, D. (2022). Group polarization is another social psychological principle that can be seen with this historical event. The increased division between the Republican party and Democratic party plays a major role in why individuals were so easily influenced by President Trumps statements. When you put hundreds if not thousands of one party in one area together, with the belief that they must overpower the Capitol and show them that “We the people” are taking a stand, things tend to escalate quickly. Unfortunately for some it escalated negatively to the fullest extent. Add in the influence of social media and being able to encourage others with likeminded beliefs to engage in such behaviors together, it was undeniably evident that January 6, 2021, was going to be a disaster. President Trump initially posted his tweet on December 19, 2023. Immediately afterward multiple individuals posted on their own social media accounts calling other “patriots” to be in Washington D.C. on January 6 th . Some specific groups who attended the rally that day were members of The Oath Keepers, which is a far-right antigovernment group in the U.S. (Southern Poverty Law Center, 2024). Three Percenters is another far-right militia group which had members present. Amongst all the groups present, the Proud Boys were said to have had the most boots on the ground during the January 6 th attack on the Capitol. The Proud boys are known as a neofascist white nationalist far-right extremist organization. (Britannica, T., 2024). Ultimately, they all had the same thought process going into that day, to make their voices heard that President Trump lost the election to a rigged system powered by democrats, and that they weren’t going to stand for it,
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