Actually, this is who we are

The insurrection at the Capitol is part of a long history of American violence

A Trump supporter.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Getty Images, iStock)

As pro-Trump insurgents stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, you heard the same refrain from commentators and elected officials over and over again: that this isn't the kind of thing that happens in America, that this looked like the situation in some war-torn foreign country, that we're better than this.

"The scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not reflect the true America," President-elect Joe Biden said in a nationally televised speech. "This is not who we are."

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Joel Mathis, The Week US

Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.