Bird’s Word

Free States reaction to capital attack

Jeff Haas teacher, he/him/his

“My initial reaction to what I saw happening was both shock coupled with a sense it was not too surprising. The combo of those two seemingly contradictory reactions is what has become so challenging to process. The incident has been very unsettling for millions of people both within as well as outside the United States. My thoughts continue to drift to the idea that... there is more at play than simply contesting the legitimate outcome of a singular election process. There are other symbols and actions which have occurred and continue to occur that suggest to me there are other grievances at work beyond or even behind the cover of electoral politics.”

Nethni Weerasekara

senior, she/her/hers

“When I heard about the attack on the U.S. Capitol last Wednesday, I was in complete and utter shock. I don’t think there are words to describe the whole mess of emotion I felt. I was in disbelief something this insane could happen in our nation. Soon that shock and disbelief turned into anger. Seeing the pictures and videos of the audacity of the protestors and the blatant disrespect they showed set me ablaze. I was, and still am, furious at the protesters who broke into the Capitol building and at the president who encouraged it. It was unbelievable to see the great United States government crumble into chaos.”

BIRDS’ WORD

pages by Ella Marshall responses collected by Alexandria Brown

Ezra Joseph junior, they/them/theirs

“My initial reaction was pure frustration. Internally, I knew the risk of rioters actually having an effect on electoral votes was very low, which made me question the purpose of storming the Capitol. Logically, the only point of this march was to incite violence. I don’t understand how the politicians who endorsed Trump and his orchestration of violence do not see the blood on their hands, and I’m deeply angered by the lack of accountability and preparation in our federal government thus far.”

Freya Monaghan freshman, she/they

‘‘It was really surprising, I knew people who support Trump were mad about the election but it really didn’t seem like a smart thing for them to do. It was surprising and it made me a bit confused.’’

Luke Campbell sophomore, he/him/his

“As I watched the situation unfold I was intrigued by the fact many news outlets refused to use the word rioters until Representative McCarthy came onto CBS and used it, almost as if they were afraid of using the term. I was frustrated Trump released a video instead of facing reporters, Biden’s speech was inspiring. It was clear Trump supported this from the fact he said they needed to take back the election and the fact the capital police were so outnumbered and unprepared.”