The Dominion Post
A trio of WVU professors have hypothesized that the individuals who stormed the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6 were poorly educated and motivated by extremist ideology.
They’re calling for an increase in online censorship and police reform in the aftermath.
“The insurrection at our Capitol was fueled by the ideas that extremist groups and our president circulated on social media. For years and years, President Trump has used Twitter as a platform to feed anger with baseless claims and incite violence in plain sight. This isn’t the first time the president has broadcasted what extremists interpret as a call-to-arms; it’s just the first time we’ve seen it result in an assault like this one,” WVU Associate Professor of Communications Studies Elizabeth Cohen said. “By hosting the ideas that incite violence, social media companies are complicit in inciting the violence.”
James Nolan, professor and chair of the WVU Department of Sociology & Anthropology, said the violent riot at the Capitol is different than the months of violent rioting that took place across the country earlier this year, referencing Dr. Martin Luther King’s description of “riot” as the “language of the unheard.”
“The riot at the U.S. Capitol building was the language of the most heard, the dominate voice, expressing new fear about a sudden loss of power and privilege,” Nolan said, adding, “What happened at the U.S. Capitol … cannot be separated from our efforts to reform American policing.”
Sharon Ryan, professor and chair of the WVU Department of Philosophy, said American democracy is ailing, in part, because some people aren’t educated enough to understand when they’re misinformed.
“A healthy democracy must ensure that its citizens are humble enough to recognize when they do not have adequate information. A healthy democracy must ensure that all of its citizens have access to a quality education that centers on providing the skills necessary for understanding reality,” Ryan said.
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