https://www.veteransforpeace.org/pressroom/news/2021/01/07/veterans-peace-condemns-yesterdays-attempt-white-supremacist
January 07, 2021

The violence that broke out on January 6th in the U.S. Capitol by people who seek to halt the certification of the 2020 election results was both unsurprising given U.S. history and was also shocking to witness. The events highlight the reality that Trump, members of his administration and the silent GOP Senate have used their positions to foment hatred, racism, and sexism, to garner support for their own agenda. However, as we all know, the problem is not Trump but a deeply entrenched and longstanding system of white supremacy.

As military veterans who know the true costs and causes of war, members of Veterans For Peace reject state violence and state-sanctioned violence. We have had to watch dishearteningly as fellow Americans invoke violence against others. These actions follow a long history of white supremacist actions in this country against indigenous, Black and Brown peoples. Furthermore, many of the people who fill the ranks of these mobs are (often white) military veterans.

As veterans ourselves, we have seen how white supremacy and violence are perpetuated in the U.S. military. The U.S. military continues to be an active recruitment tool for violent extremism and hate groups. This culture of toxicity, often fully embraced and/or condoned by military leadership continues to be a pipeline to violent right wingers, border patrol and police. We know that this pathway to violence must stop.

VFP supports peace abroad and peace at home. We support true peace which begins with defending racial and social justice by challenging systematic violence. We stand in strong opposition to the increasing trend of hate groups and political action groups that exaggerate the myths of the so-called “American” identity into moralizing political violence.

Veterans For Peace encourages our members to remain vigilant and united. It is our belief that positive change comes through nonviolent organizing, direct action, education, mobilization, and having a firm vision and commitment to help make a better tomorrow. We must continue creating a community that stands in stark opposition to the U.S. military and organize our fellow veteran community to unlearn dangerous ideology and break the conduit of violence. We can help deflect rightful discontent created by the neglect and betrayal of our institutions to constructive organizing. Let’s help create a community that is an alternative to bigoted violence and pursue an egalatarian solution to our common root problems.