The 7 Critical Truths About the Capitol Attack
Michael Moore / Michael Moore’s Facebook Page
(January 11, 2021) — The Seven Critical Truths.
1. This attack on the Capitol was an Inside Job in which some Republican members of Congress and their staffs assisted the mob in getting into and through the Capitol building.
2. Various elements of law enforcement also assisted in the attack, as did rogue cops and current and ex-military from around the country. Current members of the NYPD and the Seattle police force have been identified in footage as part of the mob. Reports say they’ve also identified active duty troops participating in the attack — plus a police chief and a sheriff — as members of the mob. The guy inside the House chamber carrying the large number of police-grade handcuff zip-ties is a retired Lt. Colonel.
3. Trump was the ringleader and the inciter — and when cries of help were made to him to send in the National Guard to protect the Capitol and our elected representatives, Trump refused.
4. This attack was a dry run for more violent attacks the terrorists are planning to launch before the Inauguration.
5. Why did members of Congress tell their staffs to stay home on Wednesday “for their own safety?” Everyone knew there would be trouble. Yet, stunningly, 1,900 Capitol Police were told to stay home on Wednesday. Only 400 reported to work. It was designed for them to be overrun.
6. Of the very few terrorists who have now been arrested, not one of them has been charged with domestic terrorism. “Trespassing” is the most common charge.
7. White supremacists were everywhere in the mob. Some wore T-shirts proclaiming, “6 Million Was Not Enough.” Our military and police departments across the country have been infiltrated by white supremacists and hard-core racists. Defunding them will defang them. Everyone knows had that mob been Black, they’d all be dead. We need to start over with a whole new concept of criminal justice, and new anti-racist peacekeeping officers.
ACTION ALERT: Congress Must Investigate Capitol Police
(January 12, 2021) — We’re still shocked by how easily an angry white supremacist mob was able to storm the US Capitol last Wednesday — and we’re sure you are, too.
Let’s be clear: The police force charged with securing the Capitol Complex allowed pro-Trump white supremacists to run wild through the halls of Congress, leading to at least five deaths and putting our democracy at risk.
Capitol Police answer to Congress and Congress answers to us. That’s why we’re reaching out to our members of Congress to demand an immediate, far-reaching investigation into white supremacist infiltration of Capitol Police.
We’ve seen US Capitol Police (USCP) in action before. USCP is the same police force that has violently removed members of the disability community peacefully protesting for health care access — ripping people from wheelchairs and dragging them out in handcuffs.1
This is the same police force that has arrested and brutalized Black and Brown activists calling for justice and legislative action.2 And USCP is the same police force that brutally murdered a Black mother named Miriam Carey for performing a U-turn near a security checkpoint a quarter-mile from Capitol grounds.3
We won’t mince words: While the Capitol Police meets Black people, progressive activists, and frontline communities with brutality and violence, far-right white insurrectionists were allowed to enter the Capitol, terrorize members of Congress, and breach both chambers in an unprecedented act of terror.
This double standard is reprehensible, dangerous, and nothing short of disgusting — and any investigation must directly address disparate treatment and bias in Capitol Police’s use of force, including USCP’s history of responding to peaceful demonstrators with violence.
In the coming days, Congressman Jamaal Bowman of New York will introduce The Congressional Oversight of Unjust Policing Act (The COUP Act). The bill would establish a national commission to investigate the January 6 attack on the Capitol and examine ties between members of the Capitol Police and white supremacist movements.4
The fact is, the FBI has known about white supremacist infiltration of police departments since at least as early as 2006. Our government has not taken any serious measures to address it.5 We also know that the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) — a group representing Capitol Police and a staunch ally of President Trump — played a role in amplifying the dangerous rhetoric that inspired the attack on the Capitol. Any investigation should also include the FOP’s connection with white nationalist groups.
After what we saw on January 6, it is clear that white supremacists have infiltrated the Capitol Police — a dangerous threat to multiracial democracy and the future of the United States. Demand an investigation now:
Demand an Investigation
The violent siege of the Capitol wasn’t a one-off “security failure.” Based on what we now know, it is clear that Capitol Police helped facilitate this attack:6
• videos show Capitol Police officers abandoning their posts, allowing white supremacist rioters to complete “the greatest breach of the US Capitol since the War of 1812.”7
• Videos show Capitol Police ushering rioters onto the Capitol grounds,8 and holding a rioter’s hand on the Capitol steps.9
• According to a DC police officer, off-duty cops participating in the siege flashed their badges and ID cards as they attempted to overrun the building.10
• After rioters were let in, USCP officers posed for selfies with rioters inside the Capitol.11 Some even helped insurrectionists locate Senator Chuck Schumer’s office.12
We are NOT calling for an increased police presence on the Capitol grounds. Overpolicing, increased surveillance, and excessive use of force is NOT the answer.
Instead, we are demanding to know the extent to which white supremacists are calling the shots within the Capitol Police force. We are demanding investigations and an aggressive policy agenda to root out the white supremacy and anti-Black racism that puts all of us in danger.
Until justice is real,
Scott, Rashad, Arisha, Erika, Malachi, Megan, Ernie, Madison, Trevor, McKayla, Ana, Ariel, Ericka, and the rest of the Color Of Change team
Congress: Investigate White Supremacist Infiltration of Capitol Police NOW
Color of Change
On Wednesday, January 6, a violent mob of pro-Trump white supremacists stormed the Capitol and threatened our government to disrupt certification of the 2020 election. Many Republican leaders were complicit in this attack.
We were shocked to see videos of an emboldened white mob break into the Capitol — not because this attempted coup was a surprise, but because US Capitol Police (USCP) did NOTHING to stop it.
The violent siege of the Capitol wasn’t a one-off “security failure.” Video footage posted online by rioters and bystanders shows multiple Capitol Police seeming to allow the white mob to commit this deadly attack.
Here’s What We Know:
• This coup attempt has been fomenting for weeks — discussed in plain sight — with vocal, full-throated support from President Trump and prominent Republican leaders, including Senator Ted Cruz, Senator Josh Hawley, and dozens of GOP House members.
• Three days before Trump supporters committed acts of terror across DC, the Pentagon asked USCP if it needed support from the National Guard to secure the Capitol. Capitol Police refused.
• Defying routine procedures, the Capitol Police did not coordinate with the federal Secret Service, Park Police, or Washington, DC police in response to the armed rioters.
Capitol Police not only refused to prevent the siege — but they also actively participated in it.
• Videos show Capitol Police officers abandoning their posts, allowing white supremacist rioters to complete “the greatest breach of the US Capitol since the War of 1812.”
• Videos show Capitol Police ushering rioters onto the Capitol grounds, and holding a rioter’s hand on the Capitol steps.
• According to a DC police officer, off-duty cops participating in the siege flashed their badges and I.D. cards as they attempted to overrun the building.
• After rioters were let in, USPC officers posed for selfies with rioters inside the Capitol. Some even helped insurrectionists locate Senator Chuck Schumer’s office.
We are NOT calling for an increased police presence on the Capitol grounds. Overpolicing, increased surveillance, and excessive use of force is NOT the answer.
Instead, we are demanding to know the extent to which white supremacists are calling the shots within the Capitol Police force. We are demanding investigations and an aggressive policy agenda to root out the white supremacy and anti-Black racism that puts all of us in danger.
Any investigation should also go beyond the role of Capitol Police leadership and individual officers and examine the role of the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), which represents Capitol police.
The FOP has been a staunch ally of President Trump and the racist rhetoric from their leadership has helped to create the alliance between law enforcement and white supremacists movement. The investigation should look into what communication and/guidance if any the FOP gave its members in relation to the protest and the context over the election in general. FOP leadership should have to answer for its failure to root out white supremacy in its own ranks.
The fact is, the FBI and the Fraternal Order of Police has known about white supremacist infiltration of police departments since at least as early as 2006. Our government has not taken any serious measures to address it. This is completely unacceptable. And after what we saw on January 6, it is even more evident we need to immediately understand the extent of the influence white supremacists have over the U.S Capitol Police. We demand answers from Congress NOW.
ACTION: Demand an immediate investigation into white supremacist infiltration of Capitol Police forces.
Below is the letter we will send to your member of Congress:
Dear Member of Congress,
I was shocked to see videos of an emboldened white mob storm the Capitol — not because this attempted coup was a surprise, but because the US Capitol Police (USCP) did NOTHING to stop it.
USPC answers to Congress and Congress answers to us. That’s why we’re demanding an immediate, far-reaching investigation into white supremacist infiltration of Capitol Police forces. This investigation must examine ties between members of US Capitol Police and white supremacist movements, directly address disparate treatment and bias in its use of force, and look at the history of Capitol Police responses to peaceful demonstrators.
As your constituent, I am demanding you vote yes on Jamaal Bowman’s proposed legislation, The Congressional Oversight of Unjust Policing Act (The COUP Act). The bill would establish a national commission to investigate the Jan. 6 terrorist attack on the Capitol, address the systemic failures in the United States Capitol security apparatus, and investigate ties between members of US Capitol Police and white supremacist movements.
White supremacy is a constant threat to Black people and our multiracial democracy. To ensure a peaceful future for the United States, you must act immediately to identify the scope of the danger and eliminate the crisis.
References:
1. Capitol Police Have Arrested Woman in a Wheelchair 15 Times—but Not MAGA Mob? The Daily Beast, 07 January 2021.
2. Racial Double Standard of Capitol Police Draws Outcry. The New York Times, 11 January 2021.
3. Pro-Trump riots raise questions on how Capitol Police handled a Black woman in 2013. WUSA9, 07 January 2021.
4. Rep. Bowman introducing COUP Act to investigate ties between White nationalists, Capitol police ranks. Fox News, 10 January 2021.
5. Unredacted FBI Document Sheds New Light On White Supremacist Infiltration of Law Enforcement. The Intercept, 29 September 2020.
6. At least 2 US Capitol Police officers suspended, more than a dozen under investigation over suspected role in riot. The Washington Post, 11 January 2021.
7. Capitol Police Intensely Scrutinized for Failing to Stop Mob. Bloomberg, 07 January 2021.
8. VIDEO: “Capitol police open doors for the protestors. They stand aside and invite them inside.” 08 January 2021.
VIDEO: “New footage shows what it was like inside the Trump mob at the Capitol,”Insider News, 08 January 2021.
9. VIDEO: “Police hand walking a rioter down the stairs for her comfort.” 06 January 2021.
10. Justice Department warns of national security fallout from Capitol Hill insurrection. Politico, 07 January 2021.
11. VIDEO: “Cops are taking selfies with the terrorists.” 06 January 2021.
12. These Are the Rioters Who Stormed the Nation’s Capitol. The New York Times, 07 January 2021.
Comment
Note: Many Capitol police officers attempted to control the law-breakers and suffered beatings that, in at least one case, proved deadly. There also needs to be an investigation of the decision-makers who ignored the obvious, impending threats and appear to have “stood by” and allowed it to happen.
