You have probably heard or watched how the events of 6th January 2021 unfolded in Washington DC & at the US Capitol - home to the world’s most trusted democracy. But here’s the basics anyway. Pro-Trump protesters stormed the United States (US) Capitol in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, 6 January, in scenes that were broadcast live on multiple news channels across the world.
Members of both Houses of the US Congress were meeting to conduct the vote certifying the Electoral College victory of Joe Biden in the US presidential election. Both Houses had to be evacuated before the Senate reconvened later. The incident led to the death of four people, including one woman succumbing to a gunshot wound. Several reports suggested people being hospitalised with tear gas injuries, baton marks, and multiple fractures.
President Trump meanwhile, took to social media to share with the protestors his love, while asking them to go home and stop the violence. As a result, his account was deactivated by Facebook, Twitter, etc for some time. Read the underlying reasons about the hows and the why in this article. Or just go through our synopsis below!
Why is this important to you, the MBA student?
Well, a question about world politics, economy, and more is most likely a GD topic during interviews. Then there’s the fact that the situation in the US also highlights some ugly truths about the world we live in and as people studying to hopefully gain leadership positions in big organisations, this is something you can actively change! So let’s get into it.
First, how it all started, and why’s it Trump’s fault, all the violence. A little something on how the US votes the President into the office before that. Unlike in India, where we vote for our representative MP, in the US, each citizen is expected to cast 3 votes. One vote as their choice for President. The 2nd vote is for the member who will represent them in the House of Representatives (the Lower House comparable to India’s Lok Sabha). The 3rd vote that citizens cast is for the member who will represent them in the US Senate (the Upper House comparable to India’s Rajya Sabha). A citizen can vote for candidates from different parties for all 3 votes.
But here’s the catch. When the voters in each state cast votes for the Presidential candidate of their choice they are voting to select their State's electors. Electors are the people who end up going to the Capitol and in turn voting for the President. There are 538 Electors selected in the US. Out of these, if a Presidential candidate wins over 270 Electors, he is said to have a majority and can be comfortably voted into the White House.
On 14th December, after clearing multiple lawsuits in various states, where Trump claimed the elections were rigged and the counting was fake, the Electors finally cast their votes. A mere formality to recognise Joe Biden as President. On 6th January, these votes were to be counted by Congress. It was this scene that the Trump supporters violently broke into. Trump, in a rally a few days back, had urged his supporters to “show their anger.” Ever since the election on 3rd Nov 2020, Trump has been tweeting about it being rigged, results being fake, etc. But it is suggested that his address to his supporters about showing their anger was what incited the mob and encouraged them to break into the Capitol.
According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll in November 2020, 68% of Republicans (Trump’s Party) said they were concerned that the election was "rigged" and 52% of Republicans actually said that Trump had "rightfully won". This is important. Because over 73 million people voted for Trump in the elections. If two-thirds of them think that he still should never concede, it would mean that nearly 50 million people in the US doubt the legitimacy of this election.
What’s interesting about this incident is the underlying political divide that the USA is currently going through. From racism to social divide, to the Black Lives Matter movement - all of this points to the underlying tensions that the new President will inherit. It also showcases a herd-like mentality that “the new world,” the USA was supposed to be exempt from. Perhaps social media is to blame. But while Facebook suspended Trump’s account for some time post this incident, the media giant has been less than flexible with Indian political activist accounts, which are also known to incite violence and mob lynchings.
What do you think? Do you think this bodes well for the rest of the world? What message does it leave you with? How do you think social media should use their knowledge and data on such potential activities? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below!
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