Wednesday was a heartbreaking and embarrassing day for America. The public watched on television and streaming platforms as angry supporters of President Donald Trump, encouraged by Trump, stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday in an attempt to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power to President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
Included in those watching in horror were several San Francisco 49ers players, including Richard Sherman, who, like so many, wondered how the situation might have been handled differently by authorities had the skin color of those taking part in the chaotic mob been different. The cornerback didn't mince words, calling the angry protesters terrorists.
Never thought Americans would let terrorists into the capital without a fight....sad day
— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) January 6, 2021
There are certain things my brain could never imagine.... and one of them is black ppl storming a government building and taking things without deadly consequences. But that's just my brain.
— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) January 6, 2021
49ers CEO Jed York shared his thoughts on Vanity Fair's report that White House staffers were told not to help Trump stage a coup or else they could be prosecuted for treason.
Don't be fooled that today was anything other than treason https://t.co/XhGpu7Ff0h
— Jed York (@JedYork) January 7, 2021
Defensive tackle Solomon Thomas could not believe what he was seeing.
Absolutely insane.
— Solomon Thomas (@SollyThomas90) January 6, 2021
Then you have long snapper Taybor Pepper, who, like so many others, could not help but react to the imagery coming out of Wednesday's events.
Def not planned btw... name something more American than making tshirts for a coup attempt lmao pic.twitter.com/4iKsPw9Bei
— Taybor Pepper (@TayborSnapping) January 7, 2021
I actually want to vomit right now pic.twitter.com/MI7t6diKEF
— Taybor Pepper (@TayborSnapping) January 7, 2021
Offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey was among those to retweet Biden's online response to the chaos.
Let me be very clear: the scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not represent who we are. What we are seeing is a small number of extremists dedicated to lawlessness. This is not dissent, it's disorder. It borders on sedition, and it must end. Now.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) January 6, 2021