On Dec. 12, Trump supporters took to the streets in Washington D.C. to protest the results of the 2020 presidential election. The protest turned violent, causing the reported vandalization of four churches and resulting in more than three dozen arrests, according to the Washington Post. These events seemingly foreshadowed what would later occur in the coming weeks.
Among those protesting the president-elect, Joe Biden, were the Proud Boys. The Proud Boys are a violent, male-only, right-wing organization that has been accused of racism, misogyny, xenophobia and white supremacy. They have denied all of these claims, however, continue to participate in violent acts towards protesters of color. They have been labeled by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a “hate group.” Ironically enough, after the first 2020 presidential debate, President Trump formally condemned the Proud Boys, stating, “I don’t know much about the Proud Boys, almost nothing, but I condemn that.”
That night in D.C., the Proud Boys removed a BLM sign from Asbury United Methodist Church’s grounds and promptly set fire to it in the middle of the street. Video footage shows members gathered around the burning sign, some actively participating in the burning. Rev. Ianther M. Mills, the pastor for Asbury, issued a public statement regarding the group and their actions, condemning them and likening the act to “cross burnings.”
The D.C. Metropolitan police department stated that they would reward anyone with any information leading to an arrest and that those responsible would likely be charged with a hate crime. This led to the group’s leader, Enrique Tarrio, taking to his Parler account to claim responsibility for the burning. “I did it,” wrote Tarrio, but said he was not motivated by race, religion nor political ideology. USA Today described the Proud Boys under Tarrio as “a de facto army of fighters who traverse the nation getting into brawls, setting fire to Black Lives Matter banners and attacking Antifa protesters.”
The investigation is ongoing, but on Jan. 4th, Tarrio was arrested in D.C. and charged with a misdemeanor, one count of destruction of property. He was released without bond and ordered to reappear in D.C. only for his court date, but never to enter the city otherwise.
The reason for this ban became clearer on Jan. 6, the day Trump supporters, including Qanon and the Proud Boys, stormed the Capitol building in a violent insurrection. The failed coup, allegedly egged on by President Trump, has left five dead, dozens injured and many facing jail time. As a result, President Trump, who dragged his feet with the police response and issued sympathetic statements to the mob, has been impeached by the House of Representatives. However, the Senate does not plan to reconvene until Jan. 19, a day before Biden’s inauguration as president.
Even though the rioters, and even President Trump, are facing justice, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the events of Jan. 6 were forecasted on Dec. 12.
