Once upon a time in our country, parents never worried that a malevolent or mentally disturbed person would be able to arm themselves and murder or injure children in classrooms or on playgrounds.
There were no national color-coded threat levels, no “see something, say something” slogans, and no annoying, time-consuming personal searches before boarding an airplane or attending a major event.
Political discourse was less rancorous, less threatening and less characterized by ad hominem attacks.
We can wish for a fairy tale world with no violence, but that scenario is reserved for the heavens. Our reality is turbulent, anxiety-producing and, at times, dangerous.
Before the mass shooting at Columbine High School in 1999 and the terrorist attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001, the responsibility for identifying threats of violence belonged to law enforcement officers or mental health professionals. Now, all of us, even children, are expected to maintain “situational awareness.” From the time a young person is able to conceptualize a physical threat, they are being taught by parents or teachers how to protect themselves or others from harm. This training includes the ability to recognize potential threats and the importance of promptly reporting suspicions to a trusted authority.
Sadly, recent political violence and global conflicts have compelled us to increase our situational awareness in ways that we could not have imagined not that long ago. Discord is not new; there have been political acts of violence in the United States since before it was an independent nation, and wars between tribes, countries and faith-based societies have happened for centuries. But now, as acts of political violence seem to be increasing, and are rapidly broadcast to the country and the world, the risks of harm seem more pervasive, more real and more consequential.
A particular subset of violence is associated with elections. In 2021, we saw hundreds of people break through physical barriers at the U.S. Capitol searching for, and intending to harm, the vice president of the United States and the speaker of the House of Representatives. In recent months we have seen two attempts to assassinate a presidential candidate and learned of specific threats to harm another candidate. Every day, we can see direct and veiled threats of political violence on social media, and there are doubtless many more inflammatory statements on the internet and the dark web that we are unaware of.
Recognizing and addressing the root causes of violence is only one aspect of preventing it. Enforcing serious consequences for these crimes is critical as well. But law enforcement still needs the assistance of citizens to help identify the threats and the individuals who intend to commit bad acts. In other words, we must remain vigilant, even when it may impact our calm and sense of well-being.
It is important to recognize that there are many valid reasons why—despite suspicion or knowledge of a threat to a public figure, a neighbor or a classmate—people may be hesitant to bring that information forward. Citizens are hesitant to make reports to authorities primarily due to fear. Witnesses are frequently afraid of retribution by the accused, or they fear that their information will not be believed by authorities. Some people believe that reporting is futile or that the “system” will fail to respond appropriately to their concerns. Others mistrust their own judgment and have deep concerns about making an error or a false accusation. Furthermore, many people maintain strong personal beliefs about “minding their own business” and so avoid “getting involved.”
Violence prevention not only requires the citizens of a society to remain vigilant, but also for law enforcement authorities to take witnessess seriously. Prevention also requires a concerted effort by everyone to avoid using provocative language in public forums and on social media, and to identify and condemn bullying and trolling behaviors. Finally, it depends on electing leaders who can effectively communicate to their constituents about the existence of threats, who will vigorously implement mitigation measures, and, when needed, will enact new laws to address emerging threats.
Anxiety-free vigilance
In his recent article for America on avoiding “election anxiety,” James Martin, S.J., recognized that many people worry about a repeat of the violence that followed the last presidential election. He reminds us that our election anxiety, manifested as “despair,” can be lessened by:
- Reminding yourself that this extreme form of hopelessness is not coming from God
- Avoiding listening to the voices (from within or without) who say “Nothing can be done”
- Acting against what you fear in whatever way you can
- Recalling that the disciples feared, wrongly, that God could bring the world anything good after the crucifixion
These actions are positive steps that we can take to reduce our anxieties and avoid giving in to despair. Allowing despair to overtake our thoughts, speech and activities can cause us to lower our vigilance and, possibly, to fail to recognize threats.
It may seem counterintuitive to urge vigilance about the myriad harms that can befall us as we simultaneously struggle to replace despair with hope. However, vigilance is not optional. We continue to live in a polarized environment in which threats and bad acts can be immediately conveyed to us through our televisions or our mobile devices. We cannot ignore the possibilities of a public disruption, mob action or incivility occurring in ways that would have been unfathomable a few decades ago.
Situational awareness is now as much a part of our culture as the awareness of sexual abuse. This is not to say that we should evolve into a society of tattletales, or become a nation in which we are punished for not reporting transgressions or rule-breaking to authorities. But it is clear that the prevention of violence is everyone’s responsibility.
Our imminent challenge is to remain vigilant in a chaotic world—while keeping despair at bay.Heeding Father Martin’s words during the weeks and months to come will help us to avoid despair, and enable us to meet our obligations to be good and faithful citizens.
[Also read: “Our children are worried about guns—and it’s hurting their mental health”]
