Jan. 6 will be a day that lives in the minds of Americans for years to come, as it was the first attack on the Capitol building since the War of 1812 after former President Donald Trump rallied his supporters and instructed them to march to the building.
The siege lasted for hours, and the nation watched the destruction. With Washington being only 45 minutes away from Montgomery County, an attack so close to home has left many in shock and fear.
“For people in Montgomery County, especially people of color, having that [attack] even be a possibility is extremely scary,” Northwest High School sophomore Maahe Kunvar said.
People of color and other minorities felt another layer of fear due to the amount of white supremacists identified within the mob and the scale of the military and police response. Students and their families watched in horror as police officers, those meant to protect our communities, were swarmed by angry rioters specifically targeting black officers.
In the summer of 2020, Black Lives Matter protests were met with heavy police response. Many recall the countless videos of police using extreme force on protestors who appeared completely peaceful.
“I think it was horrifying to see the extreme disparity between people of color and people who identify as white, and seeing the difference in the way that the two different sides are treated in our country,” Kunvar said.
Kunvar is also the Communications Director for Montgomery County Students for Change (MoCo for Change), a student-led organization that fights gun violence, school segregation, or as she puts it “anything and everything that affects students and families across the county and across the state.”
In the aftermath of the insurrection, MoCo for Change partnered with Generation Ratify — a national, student-led, feminist organization — in its call for the impeachment and removal of Trump, along with Congressional members who were involved directly with the attack. The two organizations are creating petitions, lobbying congressional leaders and finding other ways to virtually fight for justice.
In a time when everyone is isolated from most of their peers, Kunvar explains that student advocacy, the thirst for change and the fight to end long standing issues is still strong.
“It’s crazy to think that a group of two hundred students can come together in a virtual environment, … but we’ve been able to keep the work [advocacy within the organization] going,” she said.
Article by Abby Nega of Winston Churchill High School
Photo courtesy of Tyler Merbler via Wikimedia Commons under a CC BY 2.0 License
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