Political violence become "alarmingly pervasive" in U.S.: Time

Police stand guard near the White House in Washington, D.C., the United States, Nov. 5, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

"It's a real trend, and it's disrupting America's local government system."

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- Across the United States, there has been a surge of harassment, attacks, and violent threats targeting civic and public officials and their families, a recent report by the Time magazine has said.

The specter of politically motivated violence today has become alarmingly pervasive, and the fear it engenders is upending the political landscape, the article quoted more than two dozen interviews with analysts and public officials as saying on Friday.

It also mentioned that the country's most basic institutions -- election offices, city councils, municipal health departments, school boards, even public-library systems -- are "being hollowed out by relentless intimidation."

"This is serious," Clarence Anthony, who served as the mayor of South Bay, Fla., for 24 years, was quoted as saying. "It's a real trend, and it's disrupting America's local government system."