Every time violence erupts in our country, we see the same pattern. One act of bloodshed sparks calls for more bloodshed. One violent crime triggers another violent response. Revenge piles on revenge until the original tragedy is buried under new ones.

We have seen it again. A man is killed, and before the truth is even known, loud voices rush to call for retribution, punishment, and more death. Then, when the facts change, those same voices suddenly soften, excuse, or explain away the violence.

This cycle, this reflex to answer violence with more violence, is tearing us apart. It is not strength. It is not patriotism. It is not justice. It is simply violence breeding more violence.

The reality is clear, and it is backed by data. In 2022, 98% of politically motivated murders were linked to right-wing extremists (Anti-Defamation League, Murder and Extremism in the United States in 2022, Feb. 2023). Over the last decade, right-wing extremists have been responsible for the majority of extremist-related killings in the United States (Center for Strategic and International Studies, Seth G. Jones, The Escalating Terrorism Problem in the United States, June 2020). Over the past 10 years, right-wing extremists were responsible for 76% of extremist-related killings in the U.S. (The Guardian, Lois Beckett, Jan 23, 2020).

One side of the political aisle is dominated by leaders and influencers who normalize threats, joke about violence, or even call for it outright. The other side is not. That imbalance matters, because when violence is excused, minimized, or celebrated, more violence follows.

We see that imbalance again right now. In the immediate aftermath of this tragedy, before the facts were even known, prominent right-wing politicians and media figures rushed to call for violence, death, destruction, and even investigations of their political enemies. When it was revealed that the gunman was not a Democrat but a right-wing Trump supporter, the tune suddenly changed from calls for war to claims that the shooter was simply a troubled young man. Even Utah’s Governor, Spencer Cox, has publicly called for the death penalty, while Utah’s Attorney General has not yet made a decision. That means yet another prominent Republican is calling for more death, more violence, and more escalation. At the same time, there are zero Democrats, zero liberals, and zero prominent figures on the left celebrating the murder of Charlie or calling for revenge. On the Republican side of the political aisle, there are countless prominent voices calling for more violence, for war, for more death, and for more destruction, indirectly when they are not doing it directly, including from our current feckless president. This is exactly the problem. Violence on top of violence, justified by power and politics, keeps us trapped in an endless downward spiral.

Let us be clear. No one deserves to be shot. Not even those who spend their lives spreading messages many of us find hateful. A bullet does not redeem words, it only deepens wounds and gives cover to hypocrisy. Refusing to name the truth, that most of this political bloodshed is coming from one side, is dangerous. We cannot pretend it is “just politics” when people are killed. Supporting violence is not a legitimate difference of opinion. It is moral rot.

We need to make a collective decision as a country to reject violence in all its forms, not just when it is politically convenient. We need to stop excusing violent rhetoric simply because it comes from our side. We need to stop nominating and electing leaders who continue to fuel violence without accountability. We need to stand together in demanding peace, dignity, and equality for every American including LGTBQ+ and immigrants.

Violence will not save us. It will only bury us. If we want to heal, if we want to build a country worth living in, we must collectively and unanimously end the cycle now.