Opinion: ‘Political Violence’ Is Terrorism, Call It What It Is
Is the assassination of a state lawmaker and the targeting of another, among many more on a list, not domestic terrorism?
While legacy media refers to the attack as “political violence,” echoing the Department of Justice (DOJ), there is no question that the murder of a Minnesota lawmaker and her husband, along with the shooting of another lawmaker and his wife, is undoubtedly domestic terrorism. That the shooter had a list of other targets makes it more so, especially since, by definition, violence motivated by political aims is terrorism. So why not call it that?
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Over the last several years, media bias has been evident in more cases than in previous years in the modern era, as I’ve reported on numerous occasions (here, here, here, and here). From Palestine and Ukraine to war coverage across the globe, white-centered media bias is seemingly growing, not going away. This has also been noted by overly biased immigration reporting that suggests noncitizens are criminals via language like “undocumented” or “illegal.”
There are many other issues where this is prevalent, such as the silence about record killings of unarmed civilians by police and growing maternal mortality rates among nonwhite women that are rarely reported on. Instead, many legacy media outlets adopted bigoted ideas like pushing the “boys in girls' sports” narratives and treated them like social issues and not the culture wars conservatives made them into. No debunking or pushback. Just appeasement.
What white-owned corporate media has always offered.
So here we are. Vance Boelter has been caught and charged with federal charges of stalking and murdering Minnesota House of Representatives Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, in addition to stalking and shooting Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman and his wife. But no one is calling this what it is or him what he is: a far-right domestic terrorist.
The Details
Court documents allege that in the early morning hours of June 14, Boelter armed himself and dressed as a cop wearing body armor, and drove to the home of Senator Hoffman and began banging on the door while claiming to be a police officer. The Hoffmans opened the door and were reportedly alarmed to realize Boelter was wearing a facemask. According to the DOJ, the Hoffmans tried to close the door, but he repeatedly shot Mr. and Mrs. Hoffman.
“The horrific, targeted murders of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman, as well as the shooting of Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette Hoffman, have shocked the nation and united us in grief,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “These horrific acts of violence will not go unanswered: the Department of Justice will prosecute this suspect to the fullest extent of the law and, if convicted, deliver severe consequences for his alleged crimes.”
According to charging documents, Boelter then traveled to the homes of two other Minnesota elected officials, but did not make contact with either of those officials or their families. Then, Boelter drove to Rep. Melissa Hortman’s home. Meanwhile, local police, aware of the shooting at the Hoffman residence, also went to the Hortmans’ house to conduct a safety check.
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Officers saw Boelter’s car, a black Ford Explorer SUV, which was designed to resemble a police vehicle and equipped with police-style lights that were on and flashing. Officers saw Boelter, standing several feet from and facing the front door of the Hortman home. Moments later, Boelter fired several gunshots, repeatedly striking Mr. Hortman. Within seconds, Boelter fired several additional shots, repeatedly striking Rep. Hortman.
Officers reportedly provided medical aid to the Hortmans and gave chase after Boelter abandoned the SUV and fled on foot. Both Hortmans died from their wounds.
“According to the charges, the defendant had a list of possible targets and went to the homes of public officials to conduct violent attacks,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “This type of violence is unacceptable, and the FBI stands united with our law enforcement partners to find and hold accountable anyone who commits such despicable acts. I commend all the law enforcement officers who worked throughout the weekend to find the defendant and take him into custody.”
After searching Boelter’s vehicle, police recovered five firearms, “including semi-automatic, assault-style rifles, a large quantity of ammunition, and several notebooks filled with handwritten notations.” According to charging documents, his notes listed the names of dozens of state and federal elected officials, from Minnesota to Texas, and contained their home addresses.
After a two-day manhunt, police found Boelter in a field in Green Isle, Minnesota, about a mile from his family home and took him into custody.
“Vance Luthor Boelter went on a violent rampage against our elected officials,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson for the District of Minnesota. “These were targeted political assassinations the likes of which have never been seen in Minnesota. It was an attack on our state and on our democracy. We will not rest until he is brought to justice.”
Apparently, for the Trump administration, “political violence” is the politically correct term to use when the assailant is white, and legacy media is more than happy to oblige the White House.
Media Bias
Months ago, when a nonwhite man drove a truck through a crowd in New Orleans, Louisiana, legacy media had no problem calling that what it was, while some pushed false narratives about it being related to immigration. The recent violent attack against Zionists in Colorado was also broadly labeled as terrorism. In other words, they still go in hard on the unfavorable coverage and vilification of nonwhite people who have nothing to do with anything.
Similarly, when a white man drove a vehicle into a crowd during recent “No Kings” protests, or the people who fired shots at protesters, the use of phrasing is noted. While high-ranking elected officials like Ron DeSantis tell people they’re allowed to run over protesters, President Donald Trump uses inflammatory and hateful language against anyone who doesn’t support him, Black people, Latinos, the LGBTQ community, women, and so many others.
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They employ dog whistles. Their language is such that their supporters will act on what they say, similar to many domestic terrorists in the last decade who operated based on the words of people like Texas Governor Greg Abbott, DeSantis, several lawmakers, and Trump. What is happening today is not different. How it’s being covered is. The legacy news media narrative is such that it provides cover for high-ranking officials to continue to use violent rhetoric.
Who does it serve to use such soft language if not the White House? To treat any of this wth kid gloves? Because, as it stands, their political violence is only growing across the country, and it seems that all it does is make it easier for hate groups and far-right extremists like Boelter to act with impunity. The last thing we need now is passivity when people across myriad social, racial, ethnic, and political groups are being targeted in potential domestic terrorist attacks.
The villainization of many groups throughout history and the recent onslaught against Latinos will only feed violent far-right actors what they need to act. Everyone mentioned here, from legacy media to lawmakers and pundits, understands this. They all must call it what it is and call out bigoted language and behavior, not embrace it.
Charging Documents
Arturo is an independent journalist whose work can be found at Unicorn Riot, The Antagonist Magazine, Latino Rebels, and more. Arturo is also on TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Mastodon, and Threads. To support his work, become a paid subscriber or donate via Venmo, PayPal, or Cash App.
Thank you! I agree that the media is more apt to accept the military on our streets while never talking about how police in LA treat nonwhite people and are essentially occupiers in nonwhite communities. Frankly, it's sickening.
Your thought provoking posts are always so inspiring. I’ve been working on a piece on dog whistle media treatment of the Latino community as “the other” as it relates to the LA protests and the media created “riots.” It is mind boggling to me mainstream media’s acceptance of the alarming number of federal agents, National Guard and Marines in Southern California as no big deal. Federal agents and LAPD racist and cowboy tactics get no attention. Is it because the victims are immigrants or brown skinned US citizens? Nobody cares or speaks out with conviction about injustice in our failing democracy like you hermano. You educate and call bullshit and exemplify freedom of speech.👊🏽👊🏽