Keep an eye on woman-hating insurrectionists

Look at all those domestic violence charges, pre-Jan. 6

Here’s Richard Barnett, seated at Rep. Pelosi’s desk. Mr. Barnett appears to have been unchanged — so far — by his trip through the American court system.

You don’t just call for the head of Speaker Nancy Pelosi as a lark (or as a tourist), so let’s remember that an all-too-significant number of the Jan. 6 insurrectionists are white men with priors — particularly, prior convictions of domestic violence or sexual abuse, with women as their victims.

Those of us with a certain background who watched the horror unfold on television recognized the arrogance and entitlement among the hooting, preening hoard, but it’s not just us noticing. The farther we get from the event, the more research we see about the makeup of those insurrectionists.

Carrie Goldberg, a victim's rights lawyer and author of “Nobody’s Victim: Fighting Psychos Stalkers Pervs and Trolls,” drew the connection between abusers and insurrectionists for Elle:

What abusers all have in common is how they prioritize their own desire above the safety, peace, and autonomy of their victim. Sometimes, the desire itself is to take away the other’s safety, peace and autonomy.

and

Those of us in the field of domestic violence recognize the behavior of the insurrectionists: their need for power and control, their sense of entitlement.

and

There’s a certain type of abuser who will only stop when the law is laid down. The victim may say no, get family and friends to intervene, send a cease and desist, get an order of protection. But nothing helps—the threats and demands, ultimatums and terrorizing visits—persist. This most persistent type of abuser is the one who, like the insurrectionists, are driven by dogma and outsized rage, the egotistical belief that he, she, or they deserves what they’re fighting for, and that their victim should be punished for daring to think otherwise. This abuser is not fazed by the fact that another person’s peace and security are being threatened because, in the abuser’s eyes, they’re the one truly injured.

(The bold emphasis is mine.)

Really, it’s all connected. A February study from Australian researchers draws a thick line between misogynistic tweets and violence against women. Woman-hating tweets are never harmless. Words lead to actions, and if the words are anti-woman, so, too, will be the actions.

What was that old Virginia Slims ad? You’ve come a long way baby?

Maybe we haven’t come so far, after all. And that is why those of us with a certain background who watched the horror unfold on television are not letting this go — ever. We see the insurrectionists precisely for who — and what — they are.