Violence is part of America’s political culture. President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated after leading the United States in a civil war against the breakaway south. President John F Kennedy’s murder in 1963 remains the topic of rumours and conspiracy theories to this day.
The only British Prime Minister to be assassinated in office was Spencer Perceval, in 1812. Few people have heard of him. Even so, there is a sense that America is more divided than ever. In theory, Americans choose a president and then unite around the winner, at least until thoughts turn towards the next election. But Donald Trump is such a divisive figure that his opponents simply refuse to accept the result, proudly proclaiming he is “not my president”.
It’s hard to blame them in some ways, as Mr Trump himself refused to accept his defeat in the 2020 Presidential election, when he was turfed out of the White House following his first term in office.
It led to a violent march on Washington, which some Americans regarded as an attempted coup by Mr Trump’s supporters.
America has been divided before, such as during the Vietnam war. But even during the massive protests against the conflicts – and the violence that sometimes took place – US citizens retained faith in their constitution. They still believed they were a democracy.
Today, there is a serious belief among some of Mr Trump’s opponents that democracy is being overturned. America is becoming a dictatorship, sinking into fascism and possible taking orders from Russia, they say.
Meanwhile, some Trump supporters believe the Presidency of Joe Biden between 2021 and 2025 was illegitimate. There was indeed a coup, they believe, but carried out by the other side.
Debates have only grown more heated because they are carried out on social media, where the most extreme voices are often amplified most. Culture wars, including debates over trans issues, invoke fury. And America’s economic problems – so similar to ours, with young people in particular feeling older generations have robbed them of an opportunity to succeed in life – have encouraged cynicism about America’s institutions and “mainstream” political views.
This is the context in which Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt last year, and in which the horrific murder of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk took place.
Could it happen here? The riots that followed the Southport killings, and some of the violent scenes we have seen outside asylum seeker hotels, show that we are also a divided nation – although less so than the US.
There is also a lack of faith in our institutions, and a sense among many people that the economic system is not working for them.
We can perhaps be grateful that our society is not awash with guns like America.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said after Charlie Kirk’s shooting: “It’s so partisan in America, it’s so divided. We’re probably not very far behind, but it is so divided, it is so bitter.”
He’s right that the situation here is less dire than in the United States. But could it be true that we are “not very far behind”? We can only hope Mr Farage is wrong about that.