Capitol Crochet, Part II: The Insurrection

In my last post, I showed off a very happy 2021 inauguration crochet scene, here. To recap the highlights, I made a whole lot of jubilant and competent people, diligently wearing masks (except when called upon to speak or sing.)

Plus a Capitol building:

When I showed it off on Facebook, friends asked me if I would do the insurrection next. No way, I thought. Crochet, almost by definition, makes sweet and adorable objects. How could you  crochet murderous cruelty and delusion?

But I couldn't let the idea go. In the late 70s/early 80s, I lived in Washington DC, part of that time in a townhouse on Capitol Hill. Every morning, I walked a few blocks to the Capitol, up the back steps, down the front steps, across the Mall, and up to my office in Dupont Circle. I developed great affection for the Capitol and the Mall, and especially for the happy wandering tourists from far-flung places. So the January 6 insurrection, defiling a place I truly loved, hit me personally.

After debating with myself for a while, I gave it a shot. (No pun intended.)

There's a Hitler worshipper. His hat says "abuse," which could stand for what he was doing to Capitol police officers, or what happened to him in his childhood, or both. 

There's KKK bat guy.

Boxcutter guy.

Hairy backpack man. I couldn't bear to embroider a real swastika, so I did it wrong.

The nail in his backpack could give you tetanus.

He's best friends with bullet vest guy, and they brought a ladder.

Bullet vest closeups. I bought the empty casings on ebay years ago, for a different social statement crochet project. (It involved a yarn gun). 

Vest guy believes he is a Christian. 

Knitting needle guy stabs the dome. 

Gallows guy. The hat says "hate." 

They all need help; some need prison. Here's the lineup. 

I don't really know what to do with all this. At the moment, I think of it as a playset that will allow me to work through my feelings surrounding perhaps the most bizarre month in American history, January 2021. 

Revisit the much more cheerful Inauguration crochet playset here.