My kin came home bloodied from Vicksburg in the Civil War. We Americans are not immune from the worst. I’ve seen what happened in the Balkans and Rwanda when countrymen demonized and dehumanized one another, then slaughtered one another. The massacre in Tucson may have been the work of a troubled young man. But what were the messages this young man heard from too many people of prominence in our society? It’s sickening, and it has to stop. Serious Democrats and Republicans – serious Americans – understand this. [On my radio show] we work for very real but fundamentally respectful debate and inquiry. We try to model that kind of citizenship. It’s time to call out, together and loudly, those who model violence.
Tom Ashbrook, host of WBUR’s On Point
