Yesterday’s Events in Washington
January 7, 2021
Dear Members of the Boston University Community:
January 6, 2021 will go down in history as one of the darkest days in the United States since our founding. Yesterday’s violent occupation of our Capitol in Washington by a mob was an attack on our democracy. I condemn it, as should all Americans and people around the world.
It is hard to imagine the fear felt by members of Congress and their staff as they fled the mob surging down the halls of the most important building in our government. We should keep these public servants in our thoughts and prayers. We should also contemplate the damage done to the government of our republic.
A bedrock principle of our constitutional republic is the peaceful transition of leadership after an election. Interfering with the electoral transition verges on sedition and threatens one of our society’s most important protections from anarchy. The most distressing aspect of yesterday’s storming of the Capitol was that it was the result of a continuing campaign to create mistrust in the validity of our national election, promulgating without evidence conspiracy theories that have been rejected by courts across the country. We call on the outgoing administration to fulfill their duties to the Constitution and ensure a peaceful transition of power.
On January 20, Joe Biden will become president of the United States. Through the turmoil of yesterday’s violence, the physical and economic suffering caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the racial inequities that plague our society, we must find a way for all Americans to come together to help heal our divisions. Only then can we recover the optimism that has defined our country and make progress on the great challenges in front of us.
Sincerely,
Robert A. Brown
President