Violent rhetoric is making America a dangerous place

Pay attention: Political divisiveness in our country is threatening to destroy our way of life. No one is safe in an America where violent political rhetoric is transformed into real-life attacks. To verbally spew hate is repugnant, but to convert that hate into vicious acts of violence is a horrific sign of just how badly our society has eroded. We risk allowing our way of life to become synonymous with thug life.

The recent early-morning hammer attack on 82-year-old Paul Pelosi, the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), is proof that none of us is safe anywhere. Pelosi’s spouse was hospitalized with a fractured skull after a man reportedly yelled “Where is Nancy?” as he entered the couple’s San Francisco home in the wee hours of Oct. 28.

An attempt to kidnap Speaker Pelosi was foiled, authorities said, because she was not home at the time. Suspect David DePape, 42, now faces charges of attempted homicide, assault, attempted kidnapping and other felonies in relation to the incident.

Violent political rhetoric has consequences and we are seeing those consequences manifest in tangible acts of terror. As Paul Pelosi recovers from surgery for a skull fracture and other injuries, we should all feel shame. Is this what we have allowed the “land of the free and the home of the brave” to become?

Security is an illusion; the Pelosi attack is evidence of that. We are deluding ourselves into thinking we are somehow protected by locked doors. We know from high-profile incidents in the past that the opposite is true. Sadly, the problem is not limited to the United States.

Only a few months ago, in July, former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was fatally shot by a man with a homemade firearm. Shinzo was gunned down at point-blank range during a political event that supposedly was bristling with security. Abe was transported by helicopter to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Perhaps the most shocking example of a political assassin breaching security took place in November 1995 when Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was gunned down at a political rally in Tel Aviv. A right-wing extremist who opposed Rabin’s peace overtures to the Palestinians shot him to death at close range — despite Israel’s reputation as having some of the best security forces in the world. In the end, it did not matter.

None of us is safe as long as society permits and promotes violent rhetoric. And we must recognize that there are many sick individuals who will “take the bait” and run with it, producing catastrophic outcomes.

The attack on Paul Pelosi is a reminder that we need to be careful when we speak and mindful of what we say, because words have consequences. Instead of hateful rhetoric, we must return to the times when it was acceptable to disagree. Americans should welcome debate. It’s permissible for us to have different perspectives, and in some cases to agree to disagree.

Republicans and Democrats can fundamentally differ in terms of charting the best path for our country’s future without pointing to each other as mortal enemies or agitating their political bases to score points.  

For every conservative Republican in Congress who spends his time creating bombastic content, poking Democrats in the eye and riling up their base there are progressive Democrats doing the exact same thing. And it is a shame, because it means that the silent majority of Americans who are decent people, who believe in this country, who want the best possible future for our children and our grandchildren, are being done a disservice.

And to be clear, the issue is not guns. The issue is people who are willing to cross over from rhetoric to actual harm against someone over political disagreements. And there’s nothing more fundamentally un-American than using violence to affect political outcomes.

We saw this on full display during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, which was reprehensible and frightening. The wanton hatred and destruction that occurred that day was fundamentally un-American. I saw it firsthand covering the assault on the seat of our democracy alongside my crew.

We need to get back to a time where Americans were able to disagree on policy differences without resorting to physical attacks. We have to do better, and we have to start today. 

Armstrong Williams (@ARightSide) is the owner and manager of Howard Stirk Holdings I & II Broadcast Television Stations and the 2016 Multicultural Media Broadcast Owner of the Year. He is the author of “Reawakening Virtues.”