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As promised, a short thread of what I argue in this op-ed. I point out that January 6 was coincidentally and literally the Day of Epiphany, now a colloquial word which refers to a sudden awakening. The January 6 attacks are being lauded as an 1/ https://twitter.com/GlobeOpinion/status/1349329441181339649
epiphany w/in the extreme right and seen as a resounding success. While we focus on immediate needs of prosecution & next week's safety, also critical to pay attention to use of Jan 6 to recruit, radicalize, & mobilize extremists to further action. In online spaces, far right 2/
praises the attack as the start of a war, as a courageous revolutionary act complete with martyrs. Planning for armed protests in all 50 states & the US capitol lean into language about ending corruption, demanding freedom, standing up for liberty. What can be done now? We 3/
have to understand that millions of people believe an alternative universe of disinformation and conspiracies about a stolen election & a broken democracy. They believe they are the ones saving the nation from mass voter fraud. Some may be vulnerable to recruitment & 4/
mobilization efforts of extreme right. What we need now are massive investments in evidence-based public intervention to interrupt online manipulation & help ppl recognize propaganda & susceptibility to persuasive extremist rhetoric. The far right is 5/
galvanized by what they see as an awakening-- an epiphany. It had better be one for the rest of us, too. That's the gist of the piece, with more detail in the full op-ed. Hope this helps those of you who can't access it. /END
