“The mob should be the simplest element of humanity, because it is the deepest; it is the sub-consciousness of society,” G.K. Chesterton once wrote. “That is why it rises so rarely to the surface; and that is why, when it does rise, it is as awful as the unveiling of a god.”
The chilling truth in Chesterton’s statement is being made manifest in over thirty cities across America as looting, rioting, and violence rage night after night in response to the murder of George Floyd, who died on the pavement as a Minneapolis police officer crushed his neck with an unyielding knee. First there were protests of genuine outrage and cries for justice. Now, with the officer arrested and charged with murder, the protests have turned into something different. Heartbreaking videos of protesters begging rioters to stop smashing store windows, to stop looting, to stop destroying are circulating on Twitter — but the vandals carry on.
