One year ago today, I was working from home and had one of my monitors tuned in to watch the certification of the electoral college votes. I was watching not because I expected anything would happen, but because I was relieved that we would finally have a competent adult in the White House.
Well, I expected a few theatrical objections from the Republican side of things because they’d already proven that they were incapable of behaving like rational adults. I didn’t expect to be watching a full-on insurrection.
In fact, I was so incredulous when it started to be clear that something was happening, that I called my mother to confirm what I was seeing was real. For clarity, I don’t have cable tv, I was streaming on YouTube, so I was looking for confirmation that the news was showing the same thing.
Needless to say, not a lot of work got done the rest of the day as I watched the coverage.
There was a lot of shock and some fear on my part, a lot of disbelief too.
In the days that followed, as more and more information came out, that disbelief turned to anger, and over the last year, as we learned more and as social media posts made during the insurrection went viral, that anger grew.
In the last year, some of those people went on trial and went to jail, or had to pay fines. The length of the sentences grew as they went along, working their way up to those who committed the more heinous acts that day.
This is not over, not until those at the top face justice. Not until the full truth about who was involved behind the scenes is known. Not until those in office who were involved are expelled.
I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that the very existence of democracy in America is on the line.
On this anniversary, I hope a somber remembrance will lead us to better days, dear Readers.
Photo by Louis Velazquez on Unsplash
