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Congresswoman Joyce Beatty, a Democrat from Ohio, was one of nine people arrested during a vote for the right to vote on Capitol Hill this afternoon.
Beatty, who chairs the Congressional Black Caucus, shared a photo on Twitter of the United States Capitol Police (USCP) officers zipped her up and escorted her out of the building.
“Let people vote. Fight for justice, ”Beatty said in the tweet.
The MP had participated in a protest calling on the Senate to pass the For the People Act, the Democrats’ radical electoral reform bill.
The People’s Law was passed in the House in March, but is stuck in the Senate due to Republican obstruction.
Demands to change the filibuster to pass the For the People Act, as well as John Lewis’ Voting Rights Act, have intensified as Republicans enacted voting restrictions across the country.
An NBC News reporter shared a video on Twitter of protesters, led by Beatty, entering the Capitol chanting “End the obstruction!” “
According to the USCP, agents arrived at the scene of the protest, in the Hart Senate office building, at around 3:30 pm after “reports of illegal protest activity.”
“After the police arrived at the scene, they warned protesters three times to stop. Those who refused were arrested ”, USCP said in a statement.
Arresting officers then transferred two men and seven women to USCP headquarters for treatment.
Beatty shared another tweet shortly after his arrest that simply read “#GoodTrouble”. This sentence is a reference to a quote from the late Democratic Congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis.
“You have to find a way to get in the way and get in good trouble, necessary trouble,” Lewis said in a keynote speech in 2016. “You have a moral obligation, a mission and a mandate, when you leave here, go and seek justice for all. You can do it. You have to do it.”
Lewis has been arrested more than 40 times in his life, mostly for demonstrating as part of the civil rights movement.
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