The Social Causes of the January 6 Assault: American Impasse 1 of 4

On March 25, 2021, a panel convened by the School of Arts and Sciences looked at the social causes of the January 6 assault, and at the underlying reasons for partisan strife and hostility to government, both before and after the events of January 6. Watch the discussion in its entirety:

Panelists

• Ross Douthat, columnist with The New York Times and fellow with Catholic University's Institute for Human Ecology
• Yuval Levin, director of Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies at the American Enterprise Institute
• Theda Skocpol, the Victor S. Thomas Professor of Government and Sociology at Harvard University

Moderator

Michael Kimmage, ordinary professor and chair of the Department of History in Catholic University's School of Arts and Sciences

About this speaker series

The assault on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, was an unprecedented moment of violence and self-destruction. Its shadow will fall across American politics for a long time to come. In this speaker series, "American Impasse: Politics, Citizenship, and Democracy in 2021," The Catholic University of America has gathered leading voices from across the political spectrum and from journalism, academia, politics, and think tanks to discuss the origins and the greater meaning of this event. They address — in turn — the social causes of the January 6 assault, the political causes, the Civil War resonance, and the implications for citizenship and the future of American democracy.

This speaker series is sponsored by the School of Arts and Sciences through the generosity of its Board of Visitors. It is co-sponsored by the Office of Alumni Engagement.