Dr.Johnson Challenges W&J On Democracy Day

Akansha Das

managing editor

On February 23rd, Dr. Fred Johnson delivered the second keynote address of Democracy Day addressing the “Normalization of Mob Violence in America.” A Hope College historian and expert on Civil War History, Dr. Johnson’s speech was an interesting reframing of history that questioned the audience’s fundamental views - the likes of which included President John Knapp, a wide range of professors, and several students.

Starting the talk with the Insurrection on Jan 6th, Dr. Johnson discussed the ways this seemingly unpredictable and unprecedented event was horrific yet unsurprising in it’s own right. Detailing the violent brutal post-slavery treatment of black individuals in the united states, Dr. Johnson drew attention to the numerous lynchings and massacres (ex: 1921 Tulsa Massacre, Marion Indiana Lynching 1930) in which mobs dominated by white individuals committed acts upholding and preaching the system of White supremacy in America. In conveying this detailed, thorough history with a passionate and voluminous oratorical voice, the hall echoed with the very message Dr. Johnson was conveying: from the noose hanging in front of the capital to the confederate flag entering the capital for the very first time, history was both created and replaying itself that day.

Dr. Johnson also boldly reframed the way students should view historical figures as well, particularly on a campus whose namesakes include plantation owners and founding fathers Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. Dr. Johnson stated “we need to be able to hold two thoughts in our heads… it is possible to admire their [founding fathers] qualities… while also holding them accountable.” In doing so, Dr. Johnson reinforced how history acutely shapes (whether they be individual historical figures or longstanding histories of oppression) us and the need to be conscious of the ways that we reframe history in our own minds and recognize the multidimensional and nuance behind every situation and figure, the founding fathers posing the most glaring example.

Overall, Dr. Johnson shared an insightful narrative about the role mob violence and white supremacy has played in the erosion of America’s democracy, even doubting whether America’s governance system could be termed such.

Courtesy Washington & Jefferson College Fred L. Johnson III, Ph.D., speaks to students during the afternoon keynote of the 2022 Symposium on Democracy February 23, 2022 on the campus of Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, Pa.