Congresswoman and Others Arrested in Senate Building While Demanding Action on Voting Rights

Michael LucianoJul 15th, 2021, 5:04 pm
 

Joyce Beatty

Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH) and eight others were arrested by Capitol Police on Thursday in the Hart Senate Office Building after refusing to leave. Per reporting from Politico’s Nicholas Wu, Beatty and a group of dozens of Black women leaders from across the country marched to the building as part of a “Day of Action on Voting Rights.”

Beatty, the chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, and the activists linked arms and sang songs as they walked through the lobby of the Hart building. The group was calling on the Senate to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act.

After being asked or told to leave by Capitol Police, Beatty refused. She was zip-tied and taken away while she and the group continued to chant, “Fight for justice!”

Beatty’s Twitter account proudly posted a photo of her being arrested.

According the Capitol Police, nine people were arrested. The department explained the offenses:

The House is expected to take up the John Lewis Voting Rights Act later this year. Meanwhile, the legislation would almost certainly be dead on arrival in the Senate, where Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has called it “unnecessary.” The bill would require 60 votes to advance toward debate. The chamber is split, 50-50.

In June the Senate failed to advance a separate voting rights bill on a party-line procedural vote.

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Michael Luciano - Senior Editor

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