Forum on 'attempted coup' in the USA

Please join us for a staff-student forum to discuss the events in Washington DC last Wednesday 6 January 2021.  

The storming of the US Capitol has been described as ‘unprecedented’, and ‘shocking’, though perhaps given the events of the last four years it was not totally surprising.  

The aim of this open forum is to delve deeper into what these events mean and questions could include: 

• What do these events tell us about the USA?
• How did this happen, and comparisons with the policing of Black Lives Matter protests? 
• Was this an attempted coup, an insurrection, or a protest that got out of hand? 
• Is this the last gasp of Trumpism, or is it entering a new phase? 
• What is the future for the US Republican Party? 
• What are the global implications of anarchy in the USA? 

The meeting will be held on Teams on Monday 11 January starting at 4pm. Use this link to join the session: US Coup Special

Here are some pre-reading: 

Politico Magazine: Eye-Witness Accounts from inside the capitol

CNN: Report comparing policing of Black Lives Matter protests and the Wednesday insurrection 

Cas Muddle (researcher into the far right): What happened in Washington DC is happening around the world 

Pippa Norris (author of Cultural Backlash: Trump, Brexit, and Authoritarian Populism): It Happened in America: Democratic Backsliding Shouldn't Have Come as a Surprise 

Anne Applebaum (author of Twilight of Democracy): What Trump and his Mob Taught the World About America 

And remember, you saw it here first: First Dog on the moon: Trump is doing a coup. As this cartoon reminds us, it’s amazing at how inept the Americans are at organising a coup – given their record in so many other countries in the world. 

Organisers: 
Molly Andrews 
Gargi Bhattacharrya 
Rob Ahearne 
Ruth Brown 
Anna Caffrey 
Michael Cole 
Steve Hobden 
Aura Lounasmaa 
Susannah Pickering-Saqqa 
Corinne Squire 
Meera Tiwari