On Jan. 6, the day when Joe Biden would have his presidential election win officially certified by Congress, the nation watched in horror the ransacking of the U.S. Capitol building by a mob of supporters by former President Donald Trump.

Five people were killed, the “temple of democracy” defaced and the democratic process was temporarily halted when members of Congress were forced to take shelter moments before their chambers were overrun by the mob.

Although it took all day to recover from the mob’s actions, eventually security personnel gained control of the situation and members of Congress finished the process of certifying Biden’s election as president.

The Eagle’s Eye distributed a survey that asked Akins students to share their reactions to the events of January 6.

What was your initial reaction when you saw images of what was happening at the Capitol on January 6?

Drew Johnson, freshman:

“Laughing at it, and I was very upset that they were able to get in without really any consequences and that BLM was being tear-gassed and maced because we are protesting peacefully about a wrongful death that happened by police brutality, that we have been fighting for decades, while they were mad that their president Trump lost. So that’s why I was upset and laughing.”

Morgan Messer, freshman:

“I would like to say I was surprised, but I wasn’t. I knew something like this was going to happen sooner or later with rising tensions in this country, and I was/am more disappointed than anything.”

How did it make you feel to see the Capitol being ransacked?

Shay Darroux-Edwards, junior:

“I was annoyed to see white supremacists running around the halls of the Capitol over a man losing the election when BLM was getting shot and gassed for peaceful protests.”

Who or what do you think is responsible for what happened?

Morgan Messer, freshman:

“I think the anger and stubbornness of Trump and his supporters’ unwillingness to let go of the election results was the cause.” 

Many people can agree with this statement and how they feel towards types of people including the president and the unfairness it’s been in 2020 and with this unexpected turns and reaction for this new year. 

How do you feel the security personnel did in responding to the ransacking and the violence?

Drew Johnson, freshman

“I think most of them did a horrible job but there is one person who did do the best they could do, and his name Is Eugene Goodman. He knew he could hold that violent mob back, so he decided to lead them away from the Senate chamber and saved probably the lives of a dozen congressmen and women. He is a hero and deserves to be recognized”

What needs to happen to protect the democratic process of electing presidents in the future?

Cameron Alejo, sophomore

“There needs to be extra security, and the people need to know they WILL have consequences if they do anything close to what happened on January 6th.”

Cayla Flores, freshman:

“We need to start educating people and stop protecting their feelings. We can handle it, we’re big kids. We need to stop showing just one side of the story. Tell us why it was bad that they raided the building but also tell us why they felt the need to do it. Tell us why it was a good protest at first, but soon turn into tearing down and burning down a city. We need to start educating better and we need to do it now because if we don’t this will start to be a normal thing.” 

Morgan Messer, freshman:

“I think while we still need to protect our freedoms to protest and petition the government, we should keep it to PEACEFUL protesting and what we saw that day was far from it.”