One of the most cited facts about January 6th was a mock gallows brought by some protesters who named Vice President Michael Pence as a candidate for the noose. The media continued to reference and show the gallows in its coverage. It has shown less interest in the appearance of a guillotine at prior pro-Palestine protests, at the Trump inauguration, and in the protests on Saturday against Donald Trump.
The appearance of the noose on January 6th was roundly condemned, including on this blog, at the time, but then became a talking point on the left to show that this was a violent attempt to overthrow the government. Harvard Professor Lawrence Tribe has even claimed that Trump should have been charged with the attempted murder of Pence.
The media seems less alarmed by such images on the left. At the Hand Off! protest organized by Indivisible, some apparently felt it was better to focus on heads off and the divisibility of their political opponents.
The reappearance of the device associated with “The Terror” of the French Revolution was most improvised this weekend and carried by a couple of protesters. It was a small, rather pathetic version in comparison to the earlier replicas. It was only meant to convey the anger of these particular protesters about what should happen to the likes of Musk and Trump.
The point is not that everyone in this protest, or even this couple, was encouraging violence. Rather, this is rage rhetoric, which I discuss in my book, “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.”
Rage is a curious thing. If you agree with the underlying grievance it is righteous, if you disagree, it is dangerous.
For those who hate Trump, it is merely the amplification of their views and emotions. Indivisible and many Democratic politicians have been fueling the claim that democracy is dying and that we are living under a fascistic or oligarchic regime. On its website, Indivisible claims:
This is a nationwide mobilization to stop the most brazen power grab in modern history. Trump, Musk, and their billionaire cronies are orchestrating an all-out assault on our government, our economy, and our basic rights—enabled by Congress every step of the way.
“They want to strip America for parts—shuttering Social Security offices, firing essential workers, eliminating consumer protections, and gutting Medicaid—all to bankroll their billionaire tax scam. They’re handing over our tax dollars, our public services, and our democracy to the ultra-rich.
If we don’t fight now, there won’t be anything left to save.”
The protesters at the inauguration simply said that it is a symbol that is “subject to interpretation”:
The reappearance of the guillotine on the left is ironic given the analogies in my column this weekend of this rising radical movement to the Jacobins for the French Revolution.
What is missing now is just a couple powdered wigs, a tumbrel, and a catchy tune.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro professor of public interest law at George Washington University and the author of “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.”