The Enduring Fascination and Pain of the Waco Siege, 30 Years Later.
The 30th anniversary of the Waco siege has sparked renewed interest in the events that led to the deaths of 86 people, including more than 20 children. The siege has continued to captivate new generations, with their understanding of what happened shaped by pop culture and politics, along with a flurry of new film and book versions. The events are easily exploitable in today’s polarized, gun-saturated cultural landscape, with anti-government forums drawing a through line from Waco to what are presented as federal excesses in the prosecution of rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
