Over the past few weeks, we have seen television images of protests at state capitols that any rational person would find disturbing.

But nothing quite crystallizes this recent phenomenon quite like the protest staged at the Michigan capitol Thursday when protesters, clothed in camouflage and carrying military-style rifles, screamed angry taunts at legislators from the balcony of the Michigan courthouse in protest of the state’s shelter at home order.

Angry people carrying guns is a tragedy waiting to happen. Mercifully, no one was hurt.

Even so, this sort of conduct has to stop.

To suggest that these people are simply patriots exercising the Constitutional right to bear arms is a grotesque distortion. It was, in fact, an act of terrorism. Were that group of people black, the “complexion” of the reaction would almost assuredly have been much different. They would likely have been arrested or shot. Example after example proves it. There are few things more dangerous for a black citizen than exercising his constitutional right to bare arms.

To anyone whose knee-jerk reaction is to dismiss that as “playing the race card,” try this simple exercise: Google “four teens” and see what images emerge. Then google “four black teens.” What you will find is evidence is that the “race card” is generally far more legitimate than you might suspect.

But aside from the nature of these protests and how they are perceived in the context of race, there is yet another point to be drawn from what we are seeing on television, a point that Richard Nixon made in a nationally-televised speech on November 3, 1969.

At the time, tens of thousands of Americans were participating in Vietnam War demonstrations across the nation and the Nixon Administration was struggling to find an effective response.

In his TV speech, Nixon expressed an idea that quickly changed the tide of public sentiment, at least temporarily (enough to ensure a second term in the White House).

While acknowledging the protests, Nixon noted the large crowds of protesters were not truly representative of the American people as a whole. Most Americans, he said, had not taken to the streets in protest. It was that audience Nixon addressed:

“And so tonight–to you, the great silent majority of my fellow Americans–I ask for your support,” he said.

The phrase “Silent Majority” struck a chord with the American people. Almost immediately, public opinion over Nixon’s handling of the war shifted dramatically in his favor.

History tells us the popular opinion — that Silent Majority — was wrong in regard to Vietnam, which ultimately claimed more than 58,000 American lives and achieved virtually nothing.

As of today, COVID-19 has claimed more American lives in two months than the Vietnam War did in 10 years. And, contrary to what you may see on TV, there is a Silent Majority today that recognizes the gravity of that.

For every person dressing in cammo, carrying rifles and screaming at lawmakers to make a political statement, there are hundreds of thousands of Americans staying at home, complying with orders and following the advice of our medical experts. That, too, is a political statement and, a display of genuine patriotism.

Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].