The Insurrection Act and the Legitimacy of Our Revolution
Updated: Jun 22, 2020
The Insurrection Act is a call for the military to be deployed against US citizens if they incite a “violent” uprising. Donald Tr*mp has threatened to call upon the Insurrection Act, notably used recently against protesters at Standing Rock and after the assault of Rodney King in the 1992, to dismantle and frighten the Black Liberation Movement and those who are calling for an end to police brutality and systemic racism in the United States.
His invocation of this act will have dire consequences for Black protesters and will, without question, only garner more outrage and anger in the fight for justice. The black community has long been expected to show restraint and respect for the system that enslaved, criminalized, and jailed them without mercy. Those same expectations of decency are not applied to the police or the government and thus, bringing military force upon a peaceful movement will further expose the racism this country is built on.
Tr*mp calling upon the Insurrection Act is a direct example of this backwards expectation. He doesn’t want Black people to fight violence (police brutality) with their own violence, but is then allowed to fight that “violence” with his own? Make it make sense.
The Insurrection Act will slow the progress that is being made and Tr*mp knows it. He will use this act to perpetrate violence on Black people and in turn will agitate the movement more than he already has. This is not a de-escalation tactic; it is a military tactic. The past two weeks have triggered disproportionate responses from law enforcement towards peaceful protests, ultimately proving the point of the movement. If this Act is called upon and put into action, it will reinforce the brutality and militarization of the police and will further endanger the Black citizens of this country.