The importance of a martyr to the Oregon occupiers
The
occupation of a federal wildlife refuge near Burns, Ore., took a
violent turn on Jan. 26, when a shooting unfolded during a traffic stop.
One member of the armed group was killed and eight were arrested,
including leaders Ammon and Ryan Bundy. (Jenny Starrs/The Washington
Post)
Despite what some of the armed occupiers allege about government's intentions, in standoffs like these, officials prioritize the safety of everyone involved. One life lost -- on either side -- is one life too many.
And there's a reason for that besides the obvious: The protesters feed off the idea of a martyr for the cause. Indeed, they have built their cause by emphasizing that they'll die for it.
There are also long-lasting consequences to this violent confrontation that could make current and future anti-government uprisings -- the most recent ones in Nevada in 2014 involving cattle rancher Cliven Bundy and in Oregon this month involving two of Bundy's sons -- more difficult to solve peacefully. The arrest-gone-wrong inflames an already very tense relationship between the government and a small but headstrong group of people who don't respect it or recognize its authority. The standoff sympathizers are already issuing calls for reinforcements for the wildlife refuge they've occupied for for 26 days and counting.
In a Facebook post on the Bundy Ranch page, a central communication point for these armed occupiers and their supporters, people circulated a photo of the man who died, LaVoy Finicum, saying he "stood for your children's liberty" and asking who stands with him and the occupiers.
In short, the movement has a martyr, and the occupation continues, perhaps more determined than ever.
[What the armed occupiers really want, in 1 paragraph]
"This most recent confrontation would probably give them what they believe is further justification and rationale for taking extreme actions," said Bob Abbey, a former head of the Bureau of Land Management, the agency that owns and manages large tracts of land out West and is deeply intertwined with this current standoff.
[How the Bundys won in Nevada and what the government needs to do differently in Oregon]
Hours after the arrests and confrontation, the government moved to seal off the refuge where the rest of the occupiers remain. Federal agents' presence there will likely make it more difficult for occupier reinforcements to come, although it's also possible their maneuvering could escalate the situation even further.
Finicum had told CNN earlier this month he'd rather die than go to jail -- a statement that highlights the level of disdain and disrespect that many of these armed occupiers feel toward the government.
We don't know the details of who fired on whom, but it looks like Finicum got his desired outcome. The shots were fired as officials made a move to arrest the occupiers when they were apparently on their way into town to attend a community meeting. Here's the FBI's official statement on it:
Almost immediately, armed occupier sympathizers, like controversial Nevada state Assemblywoman Michelle Fiore (R), pointed the finger at the government. Authorities "ambushed" the occupiers, she said, calling for the shooter to be prosecuted.
The play-by-play she shared of what happened has not been confirmed by authorities, and Fiore, whose political career is built on anti-government sentiment, has a vested interest in shaping the narrative against the government.
But for the purposes of showing how this incident is being framed by occupation sympathizers as an us-versus-them situation, here's Fiore's full statement:
Despite what Fiore alleges, it's fair to say that in this standoff and the Nevada one, the government has taken great pains to avoid this kind of conflict.
For proof, look no further than Nevada 2014, where federal agents backed down as a roundup of Cliven Bundy's cattle that had been illegally grazing on federal land turned into an armed standoff with the Bundy family and anti-government supporters who came from as far away as Massachusetts to point guns at federal agents. A Justice Department investigation is ongoing, but more than two years later, charges have yet to be filed. Bundy told me on the standoff's first anniversary that he planned to have a party.
In Oregon, authorities attempted to negotiate with the occupiers for the past three weeks. Abbey, who has been critical of how the government handled the Nevada situation, said he thinks authorities did their best to resolve this one peacefully. He doesn't blame the government for trying to arrest the occupiers as they were apparently on their way into town for a community meeting.
"There comes a time when even patience has to give way to appropriate action," Abbey said.
But really, there are few good outcomes in these types of situations. How do you negotiate peacefully with people who don't respect or even recognize the law and are willing to die for their version of it? The best officials could have hoped for was for the occupation to fizzle out, as past ones have. Now, that seems less likely than ever.
In fact, this latest turn in the century-long drama between ranchers and the federal government appears to be going in the opposite direction of a long-term solution, Abbey said.
"If we want true change relating to public lands management," he said, "we really do need to put our weapons down and start talking."
Given the latest developments in Oregon, that isn't likely to happen anytime soon.
Amber
Phillips writes about politics for The Fix. She was previously the
one-woman D.C. bureau for the Las Vegas Sun and has reported from Boston
and Taiwan.
end quote from:
