Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee Arrested
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee was arrested Thursday while she participated in a protest in support of a federal elections overhaul.
The Texas Democrat was standing with other protesters in front of the Senate Hart Building in Washington, D.C., before Capitol Police gave them their “third and final warning” to disperse from the area, according to The Hill reporter Marty Johnson.
Video footage from Jackson Lee’s office showed police officers cuffing the representative and other demonstrators with zip ties and leading them into a police van.
Jackson Lee had gathered with protesters to demand Congress pass the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, according to the Washington Examiner.
The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would amend the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and create “procedural rules governing voting-rights violations,” New York magazine reported.
The For the People Act would mandate that states offer mail-in ballots, at least 15 days of early voting and same-day voter registration, according to The Hill.
The bills also would put independent commissions in charge of drawing district lines, the outlet reported.
The congresswoman described her actions as “getting into good trouble” in a video posted on Twitter.
“I believe when you are getting into good trouble, when you realize that the 15th Amendment has guaranteed the right to vote,” she said, “any action that is a peaceful action of civil disobedience is worthy and more to push all of us to do better and to do more.”
Jackson Lee also uploaded several photos, including one where she was pictured leaving what appears to be a jail.
“The march for justice is not easy, nor is it safe,” she tweeted along with the picture.
“Yet and still, we march forward!”
The march for justice is not easy, nor is it safe. Yet and still, we march forward! pic.twitter.com/3I7DStbBKj
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) July 30, 2021
The Democratic Party of Harris, County, Texas, praised Jackson Lee’s actions and said she was part of a “pivotal moment” in U.S. history.
“Once again we see a Black woman at the forefront of defending our civil rights and leading the fight to save our fragile democracy,” Chairman Odus Evbagharu said in a statement.
“Congresswoman Jackson Lee understands we are at a pivotal moment in the history of our nation, where our sacred right to vote is under grave threat. She recognizes that we all must take action to protect this right.”
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