U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaks during her weekly press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., the United States, on May 13, 2021. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)
Vengeful words do not cause violence, but they make it more common by dehumanizing the target and valorizing the assailant.
NEW YORK, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- History shows that violence is deeply engrained in U.S. politics -- it is a weapon wielded by powerful groups against elected leaders who challenge their power, reported the Time magazine on Wednesday.
"It is used to prevent reforms, attack diversity, and scare citizens into submission," said the report titled "The Attack on Paul Pelosi and America's Long History of Political Violence."
"The political violence in our nation's history ... is organized and purposeful. It is normalized by rhetoric that justifies it, and often encourages it," it noted.
In recent years, Republicans have adopted this playbook. Leaders of the party have called for the "execution" of Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, wife of Paul Pelosi. They have circulated memes with guns pointed at her head, said the report.
"Vengeful words do not cause violence, but they make it more common by dehumanizing the target and valorizing the assailant," it added. ■
