Sunrise Activists Arrested in Sit-In at Schumer’s Office
Fifty-four people were arrested on November 12 after protesters with the youth climate group Sunrise Movement staged a sit-in at Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s office in Washington. Capitol Police said they were charged with crowding, obstructing and incommoding. Hundreds joined the demonstration, the group said, and about 150 activists delivered letters to the offices of Democratic senators around the Capitol.
The demonstrators chanted for Schumer to leave his leadership role and held signs calling for climate action and an end to the filibuster. Their letter said Democrats needed a change after a decade of Schumer’s leadership and urged the party to make ending the filibuster a priority upon Congress’s return in January. Sunrise campaigns director Kidus Girma said the action was part of a series planned at Democratic senators’ offices over the next two weeks.
The protest came as Senate Democrats prepare to choose their leader in December. Some incoming senators have criticized Schumer’s continued leadership, while Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen has said he has not ruled out challenging him. Schumer remains the favorite, despite opposition from some Democrats and pressure from activists.
The sit-in followed an earlier protest at Schumer’s office on November 10, when three people were arrested. Sunrise first drew national attention in 2018 with a sit-in at then-House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi’s office, calling for action on climate change.
Young Activists Demand Democrats Deliver a New Direction
Young activists brought their demand for a more ambitious Democratic leadership directly to Chuck Schumer’s office: 54 Sunrise Movement protesters were arrested on November 12 during a sit-in in Washington. Capitol Police said they were charged with crowding, obstructing and incommoding. Hundreds joined the action, while activists also delivered letters to Democratic senators’ offices.
The protesters urged Democrats to abolish the filibuster upon Congress’s return in January, arguing that a decade of Schumer’s leadership has not brought the change they want. Their signs linked the fight over Senate rules to climate action. Sunrise campaigns director Kidus Girma said young people who helped elect Democrats were demanding a leader who would fight for them, not a continuation of the same approach.
The pressure comes as Senate Democrats prepare to vote on their leader in December. Some incoming senators oppose Schumer’s continuation, and Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen has left open a challenge. Schumer remains the favorite, but the sit-in underscores the cost of treating leadership as settled while activists are demanding a sharper break with the past.
The action followed another sit-in at Schumer’s office on November 10, when three people were arrested. Sunrise became nationally known after a 2018 protest at then-House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi’s office focused on climate change.
Activists’ Schumer Sit-In Presses Democrats to Abolish Filibuster
A youth climate group’s pressure campaign against Senate Democrats ended with 54 arrests at Chuck Schumer’s Washington office on November 12. Capitol Police said the demonstrators were charged with crowding, obstructing and incommoding. The activists were not only calling for Schumer to give up his leadership post; they also called on Democrats to make abolishing the filibuster a priority upon Congress’s return in January.
Hundreds joined the Sunrise Movement action, and about 150 activists delivered letters to Democratic senators’ offices. Their signs called for climate action and declared that the filibuster must go. The protest puts an activist organization’s demands for a sweeping change to Senate procedure at the center of the coming Democratic leadership debate.
Some incoming Democratic senators have criticized Schumer’s continued leadership, and Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen has not ruled out a challenge. Yet Schumer remains the favorite ahead of the caucus’s December leadership vote. Sunrise says the November 12 demonstration is one of several actions planned at Democratic senators’ offices over two weeks.
The sit-in followed a separate protest at Schumer’s office on November 10, when three people were arrested. Sunrise, which drew attention with a 2018 sit-in at then-House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi’s office, has also helped promote the Green New Deal.
Reported by The Daily Wire, The Guardian.
