Why Pardoning 1,500 Criminals Scares Me The Most
Pardoning the insurrectionists threatens to erase January 6th from history
On Monday, Donald J. Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States. We sat on our couches and watched as he signed 26 executive orders, including those regarding trade, birthright citizenship, withdrawal from the World Health Organization, and the requirement that the government recognize only two genders.
These are all alarming.
But what scared me most — and what should scare you too— was pardoning the 1,500 people who assaulted the Capitol on January 6th.
How does a country forget its past?
Humor me for a moment.
Do you remember that scene in Interstellar where Cooper sits in the principal’s office because his daughter, Murph, got into a fight with another kid?
The teacher slides him a textbook, saying, “She brought this in to show the other kids.” She remarks that it’s an “old federal textbook we’ve replaced them with the corrected version explaining how the Apollo missions were faked to bankrupt the Soviet Union.”
Cooper pauses and asks, “You don’t believe we went to the Moon?” The teacher looks uncomfortable and responds,
“I believe it was a brilliant piece of propaganda that the Soviets bankrupted themselves, pouring resources into rockets and other useless machines…”
Watching this scene for the first time, many of us gasped — “Wow, how far has society fallen to forget the lunar landings?” I mean, only the cuckoos believe in that conspiracy theory.
I draw on this scene because of its absurdity — it is hard to grasp how a nation that began the NASA program would turn around and call it propaganda. In Cooper’s America, I can only imagine that a robust, fascist regime would have the power to erase history.
The Presidential Power of Pardon
On Monday night, Trump pardoned 1,500 participants in the January 6th Insurrection. Stating, “These are the hostages, approximately 1,500 for a pardon, full pardon.”
Among those being released are roughly 600 who are charged with violent offenses — assault and obstruction, and roughly 175 are accused of using dangerous weapons. Fourteen members of far-right-leaning groups, the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers were also on the pardon list. Specifically, Enrique Tarrio, accused of seditious conspiracy and sentenced to 22 years, was let out Monday night. He remarked upon his release, “Success is going to be retribution.”
Why does this scare me?
Historically, presidents have pardoned criminals of federal crimes to show clemency at the end of their presidency. Very recently, Biden pardoned 37 people facing the death penalty, which drew a strong reaction.
But Trump’s pardoning of the insurrectionists is not about the presidential privilege of extending mercy. It is a more significant effort to rewrite the events of January 6th. By declaring their innocence in the insurrection, Trump deliberately erased all crimes that occurred that day. If no crimes occurred on January 6th, his involvement would also be null and void.
While a president cannot pardon himself — pardoning the 1,500 participants who incriminated him certainly has the same effect.
Erasing the January 6th Insurrection from history
Trump’s pardons serve as an ultimate effort to shift the narrative on this day. He uses language tools to redefine the participants, calling the accused — “hostages.” This diminishes the violence that took place on January 6th and makes the participants look like victims instead of willing insurrectionists.
His term “hostage” was used by Republican Lauren Boebert, who stood outside a D.C. jail and stated, “Now we are waiting on 22 hostages here,” “These men have already paid enough time.” She proceeded to invite them for a personal guided tour of the Capitol.
This twisting of perspectives has occurred multiple times throughout history. Infamously, during World War II, Hitler and the Nazi party created a myth that Jewish people were responsible for Germany’s failure in World War I. They then employed propaganda, education, and the destruction of history to demonize the Jews. This myth would ultimately fuel the Holocaust.
In the late 1860s, the South rewrote the Civil War, blaming their loss on the enslaved people. This constructed the Lost Cause, a period where Southern culture infused with writers, poets, and artists demonized Black Americans. It resulted in hateful Jim Crow laws and had long-lasting repercussions on Black Americans.
What we are witnessing today, in the attempt to twist our understanding of January 6th — is nothing new. It may feel “unprecedented” for our lifetime, but similar manipulations have happened in the past, potentially in much more egregious ways. For centuries, groups of power have used propaganda, language, education, and ideology to rewrite history and control society.
However, unlike in 1866 and 1935, today, we hone a unique tool: the internet. Yes, it is a double-edged sword, controlled by the billionaires who fund and support Trump’s campaign. One may argue this technology has led to the spread of misinformation that elected him in the first place. However, in previous eras, with no immediate access to the news, individuals were more isolated and easily manipulated.
I wonder if the internet's connection will provide some safety against dictatorship and total historical revisionism. Or do modern advances not matter when it comes to authoritarianism? What do you think?
If you have questions about my writing or would like to connect and continue this conversation, you may reach me on substack at https://laurenharlow.substack.com/ or through my website, https://lauren-harlow10.academicwebsite.com/
Cheers,
Lauren
