Democrats used Facebook Live and Periscope to stream their gun control sit-in protest in the House of Representatives on Wednesday after Republicans pulled the plug on C-SPAN’s feed.
Frustrated Democrats led by John Lewis (D-GA) and John Larson (D-CT) began their sit-in on the House floor Wednesday morning after Republicans tried to call a recess without voting on universal background checks and restrictions on sales for those on the suspected terrorist list.
The sit-in sparked the hashtag #NoBillNoBreak on social media. House Democrats were also joined by members of the U.S. Senate, including presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), who led a 15-hour filibuster on the Senate floor about gun control last week.
Several Democratic representatives took to the podium to speak out against gun violence — many with hoarse voices, given that the microphones had been cut out, too — and demand that House Republicans allow for a vote.
“How many more mothers? How many more fathers need to shed tears of grief before we do something?” Lewis said.
“Do [Republicans] stand for Trayvon Martin? No. Did they stand for Jordan Davis? No,” Marcia Fudge (D-OH). “Did they stand for Michael Garner or Tamir Rice? No, they didn’t. What do they stand for?”
“They talk about mental illness,” Fudge continued. “Let me tell you what makes a kid mentally ill: living with violence every single day.”
Both President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden tweeted out their support of the sit-in.
Thank you John Lewis for leading on gun violence where we need it most. https://t.co/vctfqAH5Wt
— President Obama (@POTUS44) June 22, 2016
Always the keeper of the nation's conscience at times of challenge and controversy. Thank you, John Lewis. https://t.co/D9CW2A3a2B
— VP Biden (Archived) (@VP44) June 22, 2016
Former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who herself was a victim of gun violence, also penned a letter on Medium in support of the sit-in.
“Speaking is difficult for me. But I haven’t been silenced. And neither should the American people,” Giffords wrote. “Their Representatives must vote to prevent gun violence.”
Close to 6 p.m. ET, Larson announced that food would be provided to representatives sitting in who were prepared to stay through the night.
“We will not leave the floor of this House until this Congress takes action,” Kathy Castor (D-FL) said.
Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) went to the podium to call out Republicans who were “hiding” in the House.
“I’m mad as hell at those Republicans,” Pallone said. “You know what they are? They’re cowards.”
In an interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) said the sit-in was a “publicity stunt.”
“This isn’t trying to come up with a solution to a problem — this is trying to get attention,” Ryan said.
Ryan also said that he wasn’t trying to censor the sit-in by calling a recess, which shut off House cameras and microphones.
Close to the seventh hour of the sit-in, Bill Keating (D-MA) led Democratic representatives in a chant demanding that Ryan and House Representatives “answer the call.”
“America is sending out a 9-1-1 to the only first responders they have — that’s us,” Keating said. “It’s time to do our duty. It’s time to act like Americans who care about their fellow Americans and want to stop this from happening.”
Here is the feed from C-SPAN that compiles live video filmed by various representatives:
https://www.c-span.org/video/?411624-1/watch-house-democrats-continue-house-sitin-gun-violence&live=