We are all living in the aftermath of January 6, 2021, the day that an angry mob of thousands of Trump supporters violently attacked the U.S. Capitol, the symbolic seat of democracy, and tried to stop the certification of Joe Biden as president of the United States.
Our guest on the Lean to the Left podcast was there – not as a protestor, but as a historian, and the result is his fascinating book, “Sorry Guys, We Stormed the Capitol," all based on his witnessing the Jan. 6 MAGA attack.
Ben Hamilton created the Chasing History Project to try and throw himself into dangerous situations to create historical records for future history students to study. While chasing history, he was a first-hand witness to the events of January 6, and he interviewed people as they left the Capitol building to create an accurate record of what happened in those chaotic hours.
Hamilton’s interviews and photographs piece together a fascinating first-person account of what happened that day, from Trump’s speech where he urged supporters to go to the Capitol, to the often crazy comments by those who did so, the actions – and inactions – of the police, and of the politicians who the mob forced into hiding until the uprising was quelled.
All of it was done by this former high school history teacher so future generations will understand what happened that day. It was the culmination of Hamilton’s research for his Chasing History Project, which involved attending many rallies, both by Trump’s MAGA supporters as well as Black Lives Matter.
While Hamilton expresses some sympathy for many of those who were part of that January 6 mob attack, he points out that they reacted in response to specific claims by Trump that the election was rigged.
"This is the sitting president of the United States whom they trust, whom they have trusted for years," Hamilton says. "He is the president. It doesn't get much more official than that. And he has just voiced for the fact that the election was literally stolen. So, the crowd believed that. And then he tells them…we're going to march across the city to the Capitol building…He actually implies that he's going to march with them…"
During the interview, Hamilton describes speaking with dozens of Trump supporters who illegally entered the Capitol, smashing windows and carrying clubs. He offers speculation about why the police were so outmanned, says the media reporting was inaccurate at times, and that the attack itself seemed disorganized and that claims of Antifa being behind the attack are likely inaccurate — although he doesn't doubt there may have been FBI "plants" among the protestors.
Watch or listen to the podcast — it's fascinating. And to learn more about Hamilton's Chasing History project, please visit his website, https://chasinghistoryproject.com.
Listen to the podcast:
View the interview: https://youtu.be/sA5-9i4hUBY