January 6 marks the fifth anniversary of the seizure of the U.S. Capitol as part of Donald Trump’s de facto coup attempt, which featured egging on insurrectionists as well as his less violent attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Contemplating that day, which will live in infamy as much as December 7, 1941, my thoughts turn to another assault on democracy that I witnessed, in the Philippines back in August 1987.
It was just 18 months after the country’s “People Power” revolution toppled dictator Ferdinand Marcos and installed a fragile democracy headed by Cory Aquino. The widow of slain opposition leader Benigno Aquino, she’d recently beaten Marcos in an election he then stole to perpetuate his rule. People Power righted that wrong.
To rekindle those recollections, I dug up a letter I sent to friends days after the failed putsch. I quote parts of it here, and then offer some related reflections…
[Continue Reading]