This debate over whether to call an attempt to take hostages and blow people up terrorism is confusing me. I’m not a lawyer, so I’m not arguing the legal angle (though @hoffman_bruce makes a good case for it here). I think white terrorism should be taken as seriously as Islamist. 
We know white supremacist terrorism is the greater threat now. So why do we talk about it differently than Islamist terrorism? Why is it covered differently in the news, as was on full display at the capitol? Why are we so unprepared to deal with it? csis.org/analysis/escal…
I agree the word “terrorism” is a shitty label that has adversely impacted people of color. But it’s not going away, and I think it’s past time to apply it to white supremacists the same way we would Islamists. Because this is what happens when we don’t: nytimes.com/2018/11/03/mag…
To be clear: most of the idiots who stormed the capitol were not terrorists. They were idiots. But there was a group of them that had a plan in place to kill and kidnap, with clear intent to terrorize. They just happened to be bad at it, thankfully. But the next ones might not be
AGAIN: not talking about the law, but analysis/news coverage. As a journalist covering terrorism, I’m sick to death of seeing white people who do the same things be treated differently than brown people. It’s stupid & dangerous. More people will die if we’re not better prepared.
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