The idea that January 6th, 2021, was about "one man" (Donald Trump), and "one man alone" is bullshit.
January 6th was about the unlimited bounds and recklessness of Whiteness, White people, White men in particular, White extremism, and White supremacy. It was about a movement and principles of violence that White people have used for centuries; violence that they have used against Black people, Indigenous people, Jewish people, and people from communities not identified or included in the delusional schema of Whiteness.
The events that unfolded and the actions which took place on January 6th, 2021 were about the untethered support that Donald Trump amassed through White extremist political figures such as Marco Rubio, Rudy Giuliani, Ted Cruz (as well as many others); White extremists legal figures such as legal professionals who stood by as bystanders, as well as those who advised him about his options; combined with many other uneducated and unsophisticated White people (those of who are often referred to by other White people as White trash), who felt that it was their duty to defend “their” country through and by any means necessary.
The only problem in the case of January 6th, as it was with the American Civil War of 1861, is that the sociopathic and psychopathic extremes of Whiteness and White supremacy aimed its forces within, threatening the strength and dexterity of White supremacy, White institutions, and the survival of White culture.
One of the main points of this brief reflective article, is to amplify and emphasize the lack of accountability for White people. The tactic of White people using such tools as deflection, minimization, diminishment and isolation to blame Donald Trump as the root-cause and/or main causes of January 6th, is absurd at a minimum. It is utterly insane to assert that one person has the power, control, and influences to cause the type of mayhem which emerged on January 6th. No! Just as Adolf Hitler had the support of American and other international leaders, as well as Nazi Germany coalitions – and was not solely responsible for the Jewish Holocaust; so it is that Donald Trump is not solely responsible for January 6th. It is both idiotic and dangerous to create and disseminate such a trite narrative and approach.
The tactics White people use to diminish and isolate individuals serves as a smokescreen so that White people and specifically White men, never have to take a look at the culture from which they come; a culture formed upon the fundamental principles of violence, depravity, horror, inhumanity, tribalism, and transactional-ism. It serves as a tactic so that they never have to be self-reflective, responsible for their actions, or held accountable to anyone, not even themselves. It represents the worst type of humanity, and as I say in my book, this is much more than mere privilege.
To make January 6th about Donald Trump, is to never have to deal with Whiteness and White supremacy. To make January 6th about Donald Trump, is to make sure that White men and women do not have to face themselves, their parents, and their lineage openly, authentically, and directly. To make January 6th about Donald Trump is to protect the White façade and White comfort. To make January 6th about Donald Trump, is to turn away from the opportunity to address all of the contradictions that exists within Whiteness as a culture and White exceptionalism. To make January 6th about Donald Trump, is to turn away from the opportunity to investigate the delusions of Whiteness. To make January 6th about Donald Trump, is to turn away from substantial opportunities to become a culture that truly cares about humanity and people, rather than power-hoarding, narcissistic sociopathy.
Here we are once again with White people letting themselves off the hook for the horrors they have caused by appointing a chief narcissistic sociopath who represented and still represents the epitome of White exceptionalism, and what it means to be White in America.
America has some deep soul searching and soul fixing to do. Until it does, this country, and its subsequent generations will continue to be headed towards destruction.