Congressman Jamaal Bowman vows to get arrested 'again and again' over voting rights
Congressman Jamaal Bowman vowed Friday to get arrested "again and again" in support of voting rights after U.S. Capitol Police took him into custody during a protest Thursday.
Outside the Capitol, police arrested Bowman along with nearly 30 other people who were demanding the U.S. Senate pass a sweeping voting rights bill that the House already passed.
"I will do it again and again and again," Bowman said in a statement. "I will keep doing everything in my power to bring attention to the crisis we are in and ensure our democracy functions in a manner that represents the people."
He said he had no choice but to join protesters who are "tired and frustrated with our government." On Wednesday, he joined demonstrators before the Senate's votes on voting rights and also on killing the filibuster, neither of which passed.
"I will not stand by and I will not stay quiet while the fate of our democracy continues to hang loosely by a thread that the Senate is hellbent on tearing apart," Bowman stated.
On Twitter, Capitol police said demonstrators began blocking one side of the North Barricade outside the Capitol just before noon. Officers issued three warnings, but police said demonstrators refused to get out of the way, so officers made arrests.
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In total, Capitol police tweeted officers arrested 27 people accused of crowding, obstructing or incommoding, and one for allegedly violating crowd control laws.
Capitol police declined to list Bowman's charge.
Bowman's office said Friday Bowman faced one charge of violating crowd control laws. His office said the protest, part of a hunger strike, was a non-violent demonstration.
Bowman represents New York's 16th congressional district and is in his first term. The district includes lower Westchester County and part of the Bronx.
Bowman slammed elected officials across multiple states of taking "insidious steps" to thwart voting rights. He said 52 U.S. senators "are a direct threat to democracy and standing in the way of progress." Democratic senators Joe Manchin, of West Virginia, and Kyrsten Sinema, of Arizona, along with 50 Republican senators have opposed a rule change that would get the voting rights bill passed with a simple majority rather than 60 votes.
David Propper covers Westchester County. Reach him at dpropper@lohud.com and follow him on Twitter: dg_props. Our local coverage is only possible with support from our readers.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Bowman would get arrested again in support of voting rights
