Sometimes the stench of white supremacy fills the air so quickly and with such pungent force, we have no time to adjust.
No warning whiff that prompts us to hold our breath or pinch our nose. No time to seek refuge in another location with cleaner, fresher air. Sometimes there's no hiding from its caustic fumes. The white supremacist stench blasts into our airspace, invades our nostrils, and declares itself for all that it is. We are forced to bask in it, marinate in the malodor, take in all its inglorious notes: part hypocrisy, part distraction, with strong hints of hysteria, pity, and a healthy tinge of death too.
White supremacy is to America what oxygen is to life on Earth. That is to say white supremacy is America’s life force. It has been for 400+ years, guiding the country's birth, history, economy, government, and ongoing collapse. Like oxygen, it's ubiquitous in the atmosphere and fuels the institutions that keep our society afloat, including police forces that are on paper tasked to keep all Americans safe. White supremacy like oxygen is odorless, but only sometimes and to some people. For if you are a person of color or a white person who has come to recognize the aroma, you notice its ubiquity. You know it's not odorless like oxygen, but rather fetid and putrid like sulfur. So many of us become acclimated to this stench. And heroic Americans across several generations have dedicated their lives, in fact have given their lives to ridding the country of this smell. Their mission is simple. Allowing all of us to breathe a little bit easier in this country.
Still. Sometimes the stench of white supremacy fills the air so quickly and with such pungent force, we have no time to adjust.
Instead, we pause and take a moment to state the obvious. This shit stinks.
On Wednesday, January 6th, 2021 domestic terrorists, most of them white men, stormed The Capitol Building, home of the Legislative branch and one of the most important buildings in Washington DC. These men invaded the building with nary a sign of resistance from police. At the time, the Vice President of the United States and members of Congress were officiating votes from the electoral college. They were practicing a time honored and scared tradition of American politics - the peaceful transfer of power.
These white men fueled by their supremacist oxygen ransacked the Capitol Building, looted objects, and destroyed congressional member's offices including the office of the Speaker of the House and 3rd in line for the Presidency. In the end, the police asked them nicely to go home. Not a single arrest was made. And all of this transpired on television for the nation and the world to see.
Sometimes the stench of white supremacy fills the air so quickly and with such pungent force, we have no time to adjust. Instead, we marvel at the images and think to ourselves "this shit cray." The photos and videos from today were shocking and induced all sorts of thoughts, emotions, denunciations, and as always funny memes. One omnipresent, immutable fact immediately made its rounds on the internet and I'm sure in group chats and conversations around America. The fact, so obvious and so true, stating is almost a waste of words, like explaining to an adult why 1 + 1 equals 2. And yet we state the obvious because the stench is unbearable and facts are fact. So here I go:
If the protestors were Black, they would have been fatally shot.
During the peaceful protests against police brutality in the summer of 2020, police in DC and around the United States met Black people and allies with overwhelming, organized, and militarized force. Over 14,000 people were arrested nationwide and numerous people were injured, several permanently from police brutality. DC itself was occupied by the several paramilitary forces. In contrast, when white men violently invaded the United States Capitol, well 1 - they were able to do so and 2 - there was not a single repercussion or arrest for their domestic terrorist plot. On Wednesdays, they wear insurrection, proudly.
Now that I've made the obvious point, let’s move on to deeper issues from today's events that sit on my heart and mind heavily.
Today, I was struck by images of MAGA men storming the United States Capitol to disrupt one of the most sacred narratives of America - that we are a stable democracy that has enjoys the peaceful transition of power. That is what this country was founded on. The hypocrisy of these self-described patriots violently disrupting this process should not be lost on us. These men stormed the capitol to overturn the votes of fellow citizens in the hopes of installing an undemocratically elected criminal who refuses to concede. These men's actions, their attack is the antithesis of America's founding ideals. Nothing could be less patriotic.
Of course, the irony is these MAGA men believe themselves to be true patriots. And Republicans and some in the media will see them through this lens as well. Pundits will fail to place these men in direct opposition to the arc of American history. Instead their emotions and motivations will be centered while their dangerous actions, downplayed and ignored. Of course, the MAGA men do all this because they believe that they are the sole owners of this democracy. That they alone deserve the country and should dictate who governs it and how. That their will should be enforced over the will of others. They enjoy support from a President and spineless Republican senators and congressmen who just hours before were orchestrating their own Wednesday insurrection against our democracy.
Seditious. All of them. They stand for everything the Constitution is against. Their "patriotism" is the real threat to the 245-year long American experiment. And today, they sparked The American Devolution.
Some of you may be wondering if I am wedded, bound, perhaps even blinded by this experiment. My response to you is simple. I am inspired, deeply and profoundly so, by the Black people and people of color (POC) who over the course of American history have fought to make this country live up to its founding ideals.
I think of Black people, patriots who so believed in this country, even when the country didn't love them back. I think about the Black service men and women who fought for this country, the protestors, marchers, freedom riders who sacrificed it all so that the words "all men are created equal" can ring more true for the next generation. To me, they were the real patriots. BlackLivesMatter protesters were the real patriots. Colin Kaepernick peacefully kneeling for Black people’s humanity was real patriotism. Stacey Abrams fighting to enfranchise millions to vote in Georgia is patriotism. Black people, Black women going up to the polls against all the hurdles put their way, participating in a democracy that to this day still tries to shut them out. That is patriotism.
The media and pundits won't juxtapose these two movements or people in American history. But I do. And we should not for one second forget this. While one side stands up for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for its fellow citizens, the other side, MAGA nation, believes in installing their self-professed king. What we witnessed today, 245 years after 1776, was The American Devolution. A failed coup d’etat, but a successful, erosion of the legitimacy of our democracy.
Which brings me to our next topic: credibility.
You know who has none?
The United States of America.
When I saw the walls of the Capitol being scaled by a ragtag group of white men dressed in camo. When I saw a man sitting in the Nancy Pelosi’s office with a smug look on his face. When I saw images of the the Capitol being looted by domestic terrorists.
One word came to mine: Embarrassing.
I’ve been inside the Capitol. It's a citadel of liberty filled with majestic lore. History beats of its walls, and not surprisingly, the building is heavily guarded by security. I wondered how the government could so easily be overwhelmed? Then I wondered how our national psyche changes after we see images of the Capitol Building being so easily besieged by amateurs. Of course, in actuality the actions of the police and capitol security are suspicious. Just 6 months ago, they exhibited expertise in quelling BlacksLivesMatter protests. Now they seemed feckless and ineffectual, pacified by the ever present stench.
I believe we need investigations to assess if there was coordination or blind indifference with Trump administration. Still, no matter who instigated this breach, it’s clear security failed. And we saw America being more committed to maintaining its stench, to upholding white supremacy, then protecting the Capitol Building and by extension its government from danger.
People all around the world saw the chaos and smelled the stench too. For decades, America boasted and coasted on its image of being a vibrant, strong, effective democracy. Close followers of US news knew this image to be a scam. Nevertheless, America is an image-maker of magnanimous proportions. But whatever ounce of image was left to salvage in a post-Trump America dissipated on 01/06/21.
To be honest, this doesn’t concern me. However, it represents the larger effect of the past 4 years of the Trump presidency marked by the steady grinding away at the promise, hope, and optimism in America. I was raised to believe in this hope and I suspect many of us believe or want to believe to some degree that our country’s tomorrows will be better than its todays.
Instead, the Trump years exposed large cracks in our society, the weakness of our institutions, and the abject incompetence of our government. And in the last year of Trump’s presidency, America has been ravaged by a pandemic that has left us sick and dying. In a cruel twist of fate, the highest COVID-19 death toll to date was reported on this day - 3963 people or nearly 3 people every minute. We are unable to contain the virus, competently vaccinate people, or provide any sort of economic relief to our citizens.
Yesterday was a meant to be a history day of achievement for the American experiment and a cause for celebration. Two Democrats from Georgia, including the first Black Democrat elected from the South were elected to the United States senate. Granting Democrats senate majority that will be presided over by the first female and WOC Vice President. In true American fashion, progress is intertwined with regression. It was on this day mayhem, buffoonery, and insurrection descended on the Capitol.
The most insidious effect of the Trump years and days like 01/06/21 is - Americans begin to believe less in the country. We feel less hope in the country's future. Our wells of optimism begin to dry up. We see The American Devolution, and we think to ourselves this is how it ends.
For me, the most salient question that then comes to mind is - who will survive in America?
Sometimes the stench of white supremacy fills the air so quickly and with such pungent force, we have no time to adjust.
-Wahala Jr.
Thank you for reading. If you enjoyed the piece, please share!
Much love.
If you like what you read, be sure to check out my other blog posts and follow me on Instagram @chidiakusobi
Am I Good Enough? A Reflection on Michelle Obama’s “Becoming”
Hitting Them Angles and Drake's Quest To Conquer Our Heart (‘Nice For What’ Song Review)
Dirty Computers Got the Juice: An Analysis (‘Dirty Computer’ Album Review)
Home Is Where the Vibranium Is (‘Black Panther’ Movie Review)
Too Fiery, Too Furious: The Expose America Was Waiting For
