Nine climate protesters arrested in congressional office building

By Ellie Silverman
July 19, 2023 at 10:12 p.m. EDT



Demonstrators affiliated with the advocacy group Climate Defiance take to Capitol Hill on Wednesday to protest the use of fossil fuels. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Nine protesters with the advocacy group Climate Defiance were arrested Wednesday after disrupting a meeting in a House office building, the group and police said.

A Capitol Police spokesperson confirmed the nine people were arrested under a D.C. code that prohibits crowding, obstructing or incommoding. The code is often cited when arresting protesters during peaceful, planned and coordinated actions of civil disobedience.

“After multiple warnings, the individuals did not comply with USCP’s requests to stop demonstrating and leave the building,” a Capitol Police spokesperson wrote in an email.

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By Ellie Silverman
Ellie Silverman covers protest movements, activism and local news. At The Post, she has also covered local crime and courts. She has previously reported on retail, breaking news and general assignment stories for the Philadelphia Inquirer, her hometown paper. She graduated from the University of Maryland, where she reported for the Diamondback. Twitter https://twitter.com/esilverman11