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Dear friend,
We’re still shocked by how easily an angry white supremacist mob was able to storm the U.S. Capitol last Wednesday — and we’re sure you are, too.
Let’s be clear, friend : The police force charged with securing the Capitol Complex allowed pro-Trump white supremacists to run wild through the halls of Congress, leading to at least five deaths and putting our democracy at risk.
We've seen U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) in action before. USCP is the same police force that has violently removed members of the disability community peacefully protesting for health care access — ripping people from wheelchairs and dragging them out in handcuffs.1
This is the same police force that has arrested and brutalized Black and Brown activists calling for justice and legislative action.2 And USCP is the same police force that brutally murdered a Black mother named Miriam Carey for performing a U-turn near a security checkpoint a quarter-mile from Capitol grounds.3
We won’t mince words, dear friend : While the Capitol Police meets Black people, progressive activists, and frontline communities with brutality and violence, far-right white insurrectionists were allowed to enter the Capitol, terrorize members of Congress, and breach both chambers in an unprecedented act of terror.
In the coming days, Congressman Jamaal Bowman of New York will introduce The Congressional Oversight of Unjust Policing Act (The COUP Act). The bill would establish a national commission to investigate the January 6 attack on the Capitol and examine ties between members of the Capitol Police and white supremacist movements.4
The fact is, the FBI has known about white supremacist infiltration of police departments since at least as early as 2006. Our government has not taken any serious measures to address it.5 We also know that the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) — a group representing Capitol Police and a staunch ally of President Trump — played a role in amplifying the dangerous rhetoric that inspired the attack on the Capitol. Any investigation should also include the FOP's connection with white nationalist groups.
After what we saw on January 6, it is clear that white supremacists have infiltrated the Capitol Police — a dangerous threat to multiracial democracy and the future of the United States. Demand an investigation now :
Dear friend, the violent siege of the Capitol wasn’t a one-off “security failure.” Based on what we now know, it is clear that Capitol Police helped facilitate this attack :6
- Videos show Capitol Police officers abandoning their posts, allowing white supremacist rioters to complete “the greatest breach of the U.S. Capitol since the War of 1812.”7
- Videos show Capitol Police ushering rioters onto the Capitol grounds,8 and holding a rioter’s hand on the Capitol steps.9
- According to a D.C. police officer, off-duty cops participating in the siege flashed their badges and I.D. cards as they attempted to overrun the building.10
- After rioters were let in, USCP officers posed for selfies with rioters inside the Capitol.11 Some even helped insurrectionists locate Senator Chuck Schumer’s office.12
We are NOT calling for an increased police presence on the Capitol grounds. Overpolicing, increased surveillance, and excessive use of force is NOT the answer.
Instead, we are demanding to know the extent to which white supremacists are calling the shots within the Capitol Police force. We are demanding investigations and an aggressive policy agenda to root out the white supremacy and anti-Black racism that puts all of us in danger.
Until justice is real,
Scott, Rashad, Arisha, Erika, Malachi, Megan, Ernie, Madison, Trevor, McKayla, Ana, Ariel, Ericka, and the rest of the Color Of Change team.
References :
1. Capitol Police Have Arrested Woman in a Wheelchair 15 Times—but Not MAGA Mob? The Daily Beast, 07 January 2021.
2. Racial Double Standard of Capitol Police Draws Outcry. The New York Times, 11 January 2021.
3. Pro-Trump riots raise questions on how Capitol Police handled a Black woman in 2013. WUSA9, 07 January 2021.
4. Rep. Bowman introducing COUP Act to investigate ties between White nationalists, Capitol police ranks. Fox News, 10 January 2021.
5. Unredacted FBI Document Sheds New Light On White Supremacist Infiltration of Law Enforcement. The Intercept, 29 September 2020.
6. At least 2 U.S. Capitol Police officers suspended, more than a dozen under investigation over suspected role in riot. The Washington Post, 11 January 2021.
7. Capitol Police Intensely Scrutinized for Failing to Stop Mob. Bloomberg, 07 January 2021.
8. VIDEO: "Capitol police open doors for the protestors. They stand aside and invite them inside." 08 January 2021.
VIDEO: "New footage shows what it was like inside the Trump mob at the Capitol," Insider News, 08 January 2021.
9. VIDEO: "Police hand walking a rioter down the stairs for her comfort." 06 January 2021.
10. Justice Department warns of national security fallout from Capitol Hill insurrection. Politico, 07 January 2021.
11. VIDEO: "Cops are taking selfies with the terrorists." 06 January 2021.
12. These Are the Rioters Who Stormed the Nation’s Capitol. The New York Times, 07 January 2021.
Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Please help keep our movement strong.
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