A Democratic U.S. congressman from Georgia’s 4th congressional district, which includes the populous Fulton County, was among nine people arrested Thursday in the Senate office building in Washington by Capitol Police.
And we have the video.
U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, a Democrat from Atlanta, said in a statement after his arrest that he was protesting “Senate inaction on voting rights legislation & filibuster reform. In the spirit of my dear friend and mentor – the late Congressman John Lewis – I was getting in good trouble.”
A number of members of the Congressional Black Caucus had spoken at a rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court urging Congress to change filibuster rules that allow 41 or more senators to block legislation.
They say such changes were needed to pass laws creating national standards to mandate early voting and automatic voter registration, limit gerrymandering, and put back in place reviews of voting rules in areas with a history of discrimination.
Congressional Republicans oppose the proposals and say they are a threat to voting integrity.
Republicans say the legislation would open the door to more voter fraud. They also argue that the U.S. Consitution specifically outlines that each state must run its own voting systems.
Johnson and others later marched to the Senate office building. U.S. Capitol Police confirmed they arrested two men and seven women after warning them three times to disperse.
— The U.S. Capitol Police (@CapitolPolice) July 15, 2021
Video posted online shows the demonstrators blocking a door while chanting “Hey, hey! Ho, ho! The filibuster has got to go!” and “What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Francys Johnson, the former head of the Georgia chapter of the NAACP, was also among those taken into custody.
You can see video of Johnson and his allies being handcuffed and led out of the Senate office below —
.@BlackCaucus I was arrested today protesting against Senate inaction on voting rights legislation & filibuster reform. In the spirit of my dear friend and mentor – the late Congressman John Lewis – I was getting in #goodtrouble pic.twitter.com/JjN51mRpaC
— Rep. Hank Johnson (@RepHankJohnson) July 22, 2021