It was a historic first day in office for newly elected President Donald Trump. In a frivolous gesture to fulfill a campaign promise, the President issued sweeping pardons to more than 1,500 who were charged and prosecuted for their participation in the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. With sharp strokes of a jet black marker, Mr. Trump signed several executive orders and declarations, a privilege given to the office of the President for broad but limited acts that do not require congressional approval. Many were ceremonial; others were significantly consequential.

The power for Governors and Presidents to pardon has always been controversial and at risk of abuse. It’s a provision of checks and balances in our democratic system and typically reserved as a final and gracious act of redemption when justice was unfairly executed or properly served. Both outgoing President Joe Biden and incoming President Trump revealed the favoritism, abuse, and injustice their power is fully capable of. Mr. Biden questionably pardoned his son and preemptively his political allies out of risk for retribution from the incoming administration. Mr. Trump, within hours of his inauguration, dismissed violent insurrectionists and political supporters from their convictions, and by the end of the following day, most had been released from prison.

The haunting and surreal images of an angry and vengeful mob of Donald Trump’s supporters who marched on Capitol Hill to disrupt, stop, threaten, and overturn the certification of the 2020 election results are still embedded in the minds of Americans who watched the events unfold from home. The first-hand video accounts from the rioters themselves, along with the body camera videos of the police officers who were attacked and beaten that day, provided a more shocking and disturbing picture of the actions and intent of the individuals who participated in the mob. For many, January 6, 2021, was not a day for constructive dialogue, justice, or peaceful protest; it was a day of self-righteous anger, revenge, and violence.

We do not know the individual motives of all those pardoned following their rightful convictions. Society benefits when justice is upheld, and the remorseful seek redemption and restoration for their acknowledged wrongdoing. Justice is the preservation of nonviolence and love—the virtues that sustain our humanity. Conversely, injustice is violence, and violence is injustice to our shared humanity.

Shrowded in revisionist history and outlandish claims of vindication, the lasting consequences of President Trump’s decision to pardon his convicted supporters from January 6th are far more chilling. The result is not an act of forgiveness and mercy but the anointing of political violence as a righteous means of protest. When a nation rewards violence and anger, it indirectly sanctions future acts of violence. 

The abuse of power is rarely an overnight decision. It’s the result of growing distrust, a deepening partisan divide, and a failure to adapt to the emerging threats for control of power that undermine a healthy, representative, and equitable society. As of this week, America has become unequivocally closer and apathetic to embracing authoritarianism. 

Whether an individual leads a team, organization, country, or family, leaders assume a responsibility that inspires the vision, pace, and values of the people and institution they guide. Great leaders in positions of authority do not see themselves as powerful figures but as humble stewards of their position and institutions. Great leaders respect and understand what they’ve been entrusted with and recognize the real and long-lasting consequences their decisions might create. Great leaders do not wield their position and privilege to benefit themselves in deference to their preferred narratives. Great leaders thoughtfully, compassionately, and generously guide for the benefit of the whole. 

As people of hope, we demand more from our elected and unelected leaders. Forgiveness, reconciliation, and restoration are virtues we should aspire to in our society because they create a moral, just, and inclusive future we desire. Equitable outcomes and progressive solutions with humility and context are increasingly required in the world. Leaders—at home, locally, privately, and publically—who understand and live by values that galvanize a better tomorrow are needed now more than ever. Conversely, with history as our guide, those who reward violence and anger are guaranteed to undermine peace and threaten our collective future.