Mississippi Rising’s Statement re: the Jan. 6th event at US Capitol.

Yesterday the country watched as hundreds made their way into the US Capitol with intent to stop the votes to certify the 2020 Presidential Election results in favor of Joe Biden. The news will cover this event in several ways and will get it wrong in every way. Our following statement is a recount of what really happened and how we will move forward.

First, we would like to explain what did not happen yesterday. It was not a revolutionary act or a grassroots uprising of oppressed people. Those who participated in flooding the Capitol were not revolutionaries, but rather the cookie-cutter product of good ol’ boy America. Nothing about their ideology challenges the systems this country was built on. In contrast, their anger was a reaction to what they perceived as a rejection of the status quo. Not one single person in that crowd was there on behalf of an oppressed group. This was not an uprising from a group of oppressed folks who have suffered under an oppressive government that has failed to meet their material needs. These types of people have been spoiled and coddled since America was founded. And even though they might have felt they all came together on the grounds that day through some form of grassroots organizing, they did not. Their convening was manufactured not organic. Yesterday was not a riot or rebellion — yesterday was nothing more than a Hall Pass for Fascism.

Here is what happened. Donald Trump and his MAGA ideology of racism, capitalism, and a sprinkle of fascism lost his reelection bid for President. Trump and his congressional cronies tried to manufacture non-existent evidence of election fraud and conspiracy. However, regardless that there was no conspiracy or evidence of mass fraud that would overturn the election, Trump and other complicit Republicans continued the narrative with the sole purpose of angering their base and encouraging a coup attempt. By definition, a coup is when an opposition party tries to overthrow the sitting regime by tactfully seizing control of the main government infrastructure and using violence to drive out those who currently occupy it. Yesterday was a coup attempt except those involved were trying to stop the process of certifying the election of someone they considered opposition in order to keep their desired party in office. And they used the blueprint of all American-manufactured coups abroad, starting with tactic number one — ensure the defense structure set in place to stop such acts are on the side of those leading the coup.

Make no mistake, if the Capitol police had not aided and abetted in allowing access to our nation’s Capitol, no one would have been able to pull off what we witnessed yesterday. That is why we say it was a hall pass for fascism handed out by a fascists regime. Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund claimed, “there was no intelligence that suggests there would be a breach of the US Capitol.” This is demonstratively false. Weeks worth of tweets and talk on and off of social media about yesterday’s plans bore forewarning to what was going to go down. He also said his officers “acted valiantly when faced with thousands of individuals involved in violent riotous actions.” However, there is photographic evidence of police opening up the security gates to let them enter and even posing for selfies with intruders inside the Capitol building.

We at Mississippi Rising Coalition do not have to remind you that when people protest for Black lives or when the disabled protest Mitch McConnell’s attempt to abolish Medicaid, Capitol Police somehow manages to find their military gear, tear gas, rubber bullets, billy clubs, and their ability to drag people out kicking and screaming.

We unequivocally denounce the failed fascist coup attempt yesterday — both denouncing the participants and the those in power who fueled their mission. We also maintain our position that police need to be defunded. They only work for one group as they were designed to do in the first place.

We are moving forward by building power within communities that want to have nothing to do with the fascists and the racists. We are committed to defending our most vulnerable communities from any form of terror or retaliation from the type of people who support what happened yesterday. We recognize that not only are they our neighbors and coworkers but some also hold power. Regardless of who they are and what their relationship is to our communities we are prepared to hold them accountable and defend our communities if necessary. We are also committed to organizing and training communities in defense and preparedness, as well as setting up mutual aid hubs to ensure we can take care of our own in the event of an insurgent attempt here in Mississippi.

We will not allow fascists and racists to win.

The people united will never be defeated.