Daily Herald opinion: Two years later, it's important to remember the Jan. 6 Capitol attack
Today marks two years since supporters of then-President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol as lawmakers and Vice President Mike Pence were set to certify the 2020 election victory of Joe Biden.
A lethal combination of misinformation, extremism and rage that day - fueled by Trump's dangerous actions and unforgivable inactions - ultimately led to the deaths of five police officers and at least one protester. The Capitol was breached, its halls and offices desecrated. By some estimates, the Capitol sustained more than $2.7 million in damage.
The damage to our democracy will take longer to assess.
Yet, there are some who believe the Jan. 6 riots were overblown - and some who still refer to those who broke into the Capitol as patriots and political prisoners.
They were neither.
According to the Department of Justice, about 140 police officers were assaulted Jan. 6 at the Capitol. More than 950 defendants have been arrested in nearly all 50 states, including Illinois. Among them, more than 284 defendants have been charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding officers, including 99 who have been charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily harm. About 200 people have been sentenced to prison time, one man for 10 years.
And the fallout is far from over.
The House's Jan. 6 committee last month laid the responsibility at Trump's feet and referred the former president to the Department of Justice for criminal investigation and potential prosecution - a tragic first in American history - on charges including conspiracy to defraud the government and inciting or assisting an insurrection.
We commend the work of this committee and those who spoke out at its hearings, sometimes at great personal risk. And we applaud the two Republicans willing to break with their party and sit on the committee: Illinois' Adam Kinzinger and Wyoming's Liz Cheney. Doing so cost the latter her seat.
In the Jan. 6 committee's report, Cheney wrote: "Part of the tragedy of Jan. 6 is the conduct of those who knew that what happened was profoundly wrong, but nevertheless tried to downplay it, minimize it or defend those responsible."
That was true two years ago.
It is true today.
Some argue that it's time to let what happened on Jan. 6 go. To move on.
But moving on should never mean forgetting the terrifying images taken that day at the Capitol. And it should not mean forgetting those who tried to overturn an election, putting lives - and democracy - in danger.
To do justice to Jan. 6, we need to hold those who broke the law accountable, to honor those who protected the electoral process and to push ourselves to be better caretakers of democracy.