Talk:January 6 United States Capitol attack

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Current consensus on size and organization:

The specific subjects of international and domestic reactions, the aftermath, the death of Brian Sicknick, the law enforcement response, and the events at state capitols and other cities, are not covered in full detail here but in the linked articles. Portions of those articles are transcluded here, if opportune, per WP:SYNC.
As long as the article is too long (true as of Nov 5) it should be shortened, but the Very long tag should not be used (for the whole article); instead, Very long section tags could be used. An idea to use more refined methods of managing length (copyediting, moving information to notes, refining/trimming transcluded sections, etc.), instead of further splitting and more routine removal was agreed on here and here.

Current consensus on naming and terminology:

The page's title was moved to 'January 6 United States Capitol attack' after this move request.
The decision to not use the word "urge" in the lead, in reference to Trump's actions, was agreed in this subsection.
There is no consensus to call this event Terrorism as per this RFC

WP:ACDS actions:

~~Under ACDS, starting Jan 16, a move request cannot be opened nor be closed to move to a title using the word "insurrection" for a month. See the Arbitration enforcement log (diff) for details.~~ Expired since Feb 16, 2021
Under ACDS, only users who possess the extended-confirmed user right may close discussions for this page. See the Arbitration enforcement log (diff) for details.

A news item involving this article was featured on Wikipedia's Main Page in the "In the news" column on January 6, 2021.

This article has previously been nominated to be moved.

Discussions:

RM, 2021 United States Capitol protests → 2021 United States coup d'etat attempt, Not moved, 6 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 United States Capitol protests → 2021 storming of the United States Capitol, Moved, 6 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → United States Capitol insurrection, Procedural close, 7 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → 2021 breach of the United States Capitol, Procedural close, 8 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → The Trump insurrection, Procedural close, 9 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → 2021 breach of US Capitol, Not moved, 15 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → Storming of the United States Capitol, Procedural close, 16 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → Insurrection at the United States Capitol, Not moved, 16 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → 2021 Terrorist Attack on the United States Capitol, Not moved, 21 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → 2021 United States Capitol riot, Not moved, 23 January 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → 2021 United States Capitol attack, Not moved, 4 February 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → Storming of the United States Capitol, Procedural close, 16 February 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → January 6 United States Capitol attack, Moved to 2021 United States Capitol attack, 31 May 2021, discussion
Move Review initiated 1 June 2021. Overturned, moved to 2021 storming of the United States Capitol, 1 August 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 storming of the United States Capitol → 2021 United States Capitol attack, Moved to 2021 United States Capitol attack, 2 August 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 United States Capitol attack → January 6 attack, Not moved, 7 November 2021, discussion
RM, 2021 United States Capitol attack → January 6 United States Capitol attack, No consensus, 8 January 2022, discussion
RM, 2021 United States Capitol attack → January 6 United States Capitol attack, Moved, 28 July 2022, discussion
RM, January 6 United States Capitol attack → 2021 United States Capitol attack, Not moved, 9 January 2023, discussion
RM, January 6 United States Capitol attack → 2021 United States coup d'état attempt, Not moved, 31 January 2023, discussion
RM, January 6 United States Capitol attack → January 6, 2021 United States Capitol attack, No consensus, 21 January 2024, discussion
RM, January 6 United States Capitol attack → January 6 insurrection, No consensus, 26 January 2024, discussion

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Text has been copied to or from this article; see the list below. The source pages now serve to provide attribution for the content in the destination pages and must not be deleted as long as the copies exist. For attribution and to access older versions of the copied text, please see the history links below.

Copied 2021 storming of the United States Capitol (oldid, history) → Aftermath of the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol (diff)
Copied 2021 storming of the United States Capitol (oldid, history) → International reactions to the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol (diff)
Copied 2021 storming of the United States Capitol (oldid, history) → Domestic reactions to the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol (diff)
Copied 2021 storming of the United States Capitol (oldid, history) → Death of Brian Sicknick (diff)
Copied 2021 storming of the United States Capitol (oldid, history) → Law enforcement response to the 2021 United States Capitol attack (diff)

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This article has been viewed enough times in a single week to appear in the Top 25 Report 2 times. The weeks in which this happened:

January 3 to 9, 2021 (5th)
January 10 to 16, 2021 (7th)

This article has been mentioned by multiple media organizations:

Alex Pasternack (2021-01-14). "As a mob attacked the Capitol, Wikipedia struggled to find the right words". Fast Company. Archived from the original on 2021-01-15. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
Alex Hern (2021-01-15). "Wikipedia at 20: last gasp of an internet vision, or a beacon to a better future?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2020-01-15. Retrieved 2020-01-15. At 6.34pm UK time on 6 January this year, one Wikipedia editor, with the username Another Believer, decided that events in Washington looked important enough to warrant an article. Tentatively titled "January 2021 Donald Trump rally", the initial entry was brief: "On 6 January 2021, thousands of Donald Trump supporters gathered in Washington DC to reject results of the November 2020 presidential election." {{cite news}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 2021-01-15 suggested (help)
Heather Kelly (2021-01-15). "On its 20th birthday, Wikipedia might be safest place online". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2021-01-15. Retrieved 2021-01-15. This month, the online encyclopedia's strengths and quirks were on full display as hundreds of volunteers furiously worked to create a page for the Capitol riots as events unfolded Jan. 6. As it transitioned from a protest to something more violent, Wikipedia's volunteer editors added key details while debating the article title, as shared by editor Molly White. Was it a protest, an insurrection or a riot? It ended up the "2021 storming of the United States Capitol." Hundreds of people were working on the ballooning document at a time, which has now been touched by nearly 1,000 editors, is more than 10,000 words long and has been viewed nearly 2 million times.
Stephen Harrison (2021-01-15). "To Celebrate Wikipedia's 20th Birthday, Try Editing It". Slate. Archived from the original on 2021-01-16. Retrieved 2021-01-15. Take the recent debate over the nomenclature that Wikipedia should use to describe last week's frightening events. Should that destruction and violence be described as President Donald Trump's supporters "storming" the United States Capitol, an "insurrection," or a "coup attempt"? Is it "terrorism"? "The long-standing consensus is that article titles on events, such as this, should reflect how reliable sources have described the event," said Chet Long, one of Wikipedia's long-term volunteer administrators, who edits under the username Coffee. The issue here was that reliable sources have covered the event using all of that nomenclature. At publication time, the Wikipedia article is named "2021 storming of the United States Capitol" based on the consensus of editors that the majority of media sources have also characterized it as a "storming." Of course, reasonable minds can disagree on that decision, which developed after spirited, reasoned debate. One thing is clear: That's not a boring issue. The language that the world's most popular internet encyclopedia uses to describe the events of Jan. 6, 2021, will affect how that day will be perceived by the public in both the short and long term.
Grace Gedye (2021-02-04). "When the Capitol Was Attacked, Wikipedia Went to Work". Washington Monthly. Retrieved 2021-02-04. As protestors at the Capitol turned violent, one major debate among Wikipedia editors was how to describe the event in the page's title. Was it a protest? A riot? An insurrection? A coup attempt?
Stephen L. Carter (2022-08-02). "Are We in a Recession? Don't Ask Wikipedia". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2022-09-02. And nobody will be surprised to learn that the page designated "2021 United States Capitol Attack" is also partly locked. Fierce argument rages even over what the page should be called.

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Section sizes

Section size for January 6 United States Capitol attack (58 sections)
Section name	Byte count	Section total
(Top)	79,419	79,419
Background	35	81,039
Attempts to overturn the presidential election	18,714	18,714
Planning of January 6 events	18,815	32,265
Seditious conspiracy by Oath Keepers and Proud Boys	13,450	13,450
Predictions of violence	17,433	17,433
Law enforcement and National Guard preparations	12,592	12,592
Trump supporters gather in D.C.	14,936	49,763
January 5 meetings	3,724	3,724
Bombs placed	5,120	5,120
January 6 Trump rally	12,648	25,983
Trump's speech	13,335	13,335
Attack on the Capitol	3,435	82,045
Proud Boys march to Capitol as mob assembles	4,065	4,065
Bombs discovered near Capitol Complex	168	168
Attack begins near Peace Monument, led by Proud Boys	13,356	13,356
Attackers on west terrace breach Senate Wing hallway	16,288	16,288
Evacuation of leadership amid Capitol lockdown	27,161	27,161
Oath Keepers arrive and breach Rotunda	2,280	2,280
QAnon follower killed by police while attempting to breach Speaker's Lobby	7,551	7,551
Attack on the Tunnel	5,873	5,873
Police clear the Capitol and Congress reconvenes	1,868	1,868
Federal officials' conduct	32	50,657
Trump's conduct	11,884	30,564
Inflammatory speech while knowing of weapons	2,934	2,934
Allegation that he assaulted a Secret Service driver	4,654	4,654
Endangering Mike Pence	8,163	8,163
Failure to end the attack	2,929	2,929
Capitol Police leadership's failure to prepare	2,686	2,686
Department of Defense leadership's refusal to send Guard	12,068	12,068
Congressional conduct	2,885	2,885
Deletion of Secret Service and Homeland Security text messages	2,422	2,422
Participants, groups, and criminal charges	6,836	62,714
Proud Boys	4,027	4,027
Oath Keepers	6,250	6,250
QAnon	8,780	8,780
White supremacists, neo-Nazis, and neo-Confederates	12,277	12,277
Others	8,265	8,265
Police and military connections	6,183	6,183
Analysis	10,096	10,096
Results	13	26,283
Casualties and suicides	13,695	13,695
Damage	8,700	8,700
Laptop theft and cybersecurity concerns	3,875	3,875
Aftermath	17	10,413
Political, legal, and social repercussions	4,600	4,600
Domestic reactions	2,571	2,571
International reactions	131	131
14th Amendment disqualification	3,094	3,094
Analysis and terminology	1,754	12,451
Historians' perspectives	10,697	10,697
See also	1,220	1,220
Notes	31	31
References	14,401	14,401
External links	964	10,457
Federal government	3,127	3,127
Video	2,113	2,113
Timeline	4,253	4,253
Total	480,893	480,893

More on the Confederate Flag

The article says this was the first time the confederate flag was flown in the Capital. However in 2015 during a debate about the use of the flag, an (incorrect) version of it was on display the House. While I guess we could get in semantics about it not being the real one, I think it warrants discussion about the accuracy of the claim. House Dems display incorrect Confederate flag | The Hill Anyway thoughts? 3Kingdoms (talk) 18:02, 27 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

What has this to do with events 4 years later? Slatersteven (talk) 18:07, 27 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

This page says January 6 was the first time the flag was flown in the capital. However after seeing the article linked I wanted to know what others think about this being accurate.Also sorry if my original post was not clear. I revised it to explain why I brought this up.3Kingdoms (talk) 19:56, 27 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

That isn't a flag. DN (talk) 18:09, 27 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

true, but I can see some people saying that’s semantics so I want to see what others think. At the moment seeing this at least makes me wonder if the statement about it being the first time flown in the capital should be revised or removed. 3Kingdoms (talk) 20:00, 27 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I'm open to claims that some congressman or protester peacefully might have entered the capitol with a flag sometime in the 1950-70s, but the exhibit on the House floor isn't relevant. Imagine how many swastikas or sickles-and-hammers have been shown as exhibits. Feoffer (talk) 12:42, 28 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Im think you need to read wp:v if no link is made, we can't say there is a link. If RS say X we have to say X even if our wp:or says Y. Slatersteven (talk) 13:48, 28 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

We have reliable sources saying it was the first time, but another reliable source appears to contradict that information. My only point is to ask what people think. 3Kingdoms (talk) 15:06, 28 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

No we have a reliable source saying it and your wp:or saying otherwise. It is not a flag, it is not flying and it is not being carried (and (as the source says) it's not even a Confederate flag). Slatersteven (talk) 15:17, 28 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The CNN article linked also mentions other times it has been displayed. My whole point is to hear what people think and try to avoid people arguing semantics. For example flying the flag usually refers to hanging on polls so one could argue that since it was only carried it was not “flown”. I never argued that it be removed only that it seemed possible there was doubt to the claim and wished to hear from others. 3Kingdoms (talk) 15:41, 28 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Okay from the CNN article: “While versions of the Confederate flag have appeared in legitimate exhibits in the country’s legislative headquarters, the closest any rebel carrying a Confederate flag ever came to the Capitol was about 6 miles, during the Battle of Fort Stevens on July 11 and 12, 1864.” Maybe it should be revised to being the first unlawful display of the flag in the capital? Thoughts?

Does the source say unlawful or "rebel carrying a Confederate flag"? Slatersteven (talk) 15:15, 28 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

“Rebel”, but I can see people getting into a back and forth about using the term rebel so unlawful could be the neutral compromise choice. 3Kingdoms (talk) 15:30, 28 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

LIke with "FIRST TIME"? Slatersteven (talk) 10:31, 29 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Yes I could see that happening so I think discussing and working on a consensus would be prudent. 3Kingdoms (talk) 14:52, 29 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]