Is Property Destruction Violence?

(An overview of the January 21, 2023, Atlanta protest turned violent)

The protest

Reuters news reported on January 21 that a protest in Atlanta turned violent. Peaceful marchers gathered to protest the killing of an activist by law enforcement. Some demonstrators set a police car on fire and smashed windows.

The problem

Fox News guest David Peisner of CNN questioned if this property damage constituted violence. He claimed the police instigated the only violence that took place in the fiery uproar in Atlanta.

Peisner told CNN’s Pamela Brown on CNN Newsroom, “I think that there’s a real blurring of the line in the use of the word violence. Is property destruction violence? To some people, it certainly is. But, you know, this idea that breaking windows or other acts of property destruction are the same as actual violence against humans, it’s kind of a dangerous and slippery concept.”

“You keep using these words ‘violent, violent, violent, violent’… The only acts of violence against people that I saw were police tackling protesters,” he added.

Fox News contributor Jason Chaffetz joined “The Faulkner Focus” to discuss his reaction.

“When they’re throwing bricks and starting fires, and they are creating terrorism, essentially, which is what they’re charged with. They’re somebody’s wife or so, somebody’s husband, maybe a dad or a son or a daughter is going to have to go out there and protect the rest of the community to do it,” Chaffetz told Harris Faulkner.

“So don’t tell me that this is some innocent thing that… violence is the wrong word,” he continued. “Are you kidding? I’m glad they’re prosecuting some of these people. They need to put some people in jail if they would strongly do that if they’re able to do it. Hopefully, you can start to make a dent in this, but at least call it out. At least be one to say this is fundamentally wrong.”

When I first learned of this exchange, I thought Fox News was overreacting. I thought violence could only be against a person and never against an inanimate object. So it felt odd to…

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