Seven far-left activists were arrested Monday after occupying House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s office over funding for HIV and AIDS programs.
The demonstrators demanded Congress reauthorize provisions of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, set to expire at the end of the month.
A spokesperson for the Capitol police said the agitators were asked to leave but “refused to cease demonstrating.”
“PEPFAR has saved millions of lives. It is criminal for some members of Congress to treat it as a political football,” Charles King, CEO of Housing Works, said in a statement. “AIDS isn’t over until it’s over for everyone. PEPFAR has been essential to helping people in developing countries flatten the curve of HIV transmission. The United States has committed to the international goal of ending AIDS by 2030, and we cannot do that if PEPFAR is threatened.”
In a statement, Health GAP Executive Director Asia Russell accused House Republicans of "playing political games with the lives of countless adults, children, and newborns with HIV and most affected by HIV across the globe and here in the U.S."
The demands included a "5-year reauthorization of PEPFAR in its current form, and full funding for HIV treatment and prevention programs in the U.S."
Both King and Russell were among those arrested.
Conservatives wondered whether they'd be treated similarly to those involved in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
LGBTQ activists stormed Kevin McCarthy’s office at the Capitol today
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) September 11, 2023
Will they get the J/6 treatment (raids, pre-trial detentions, bank accounts shut down, 22 years in prison)?
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Far Left insurrectionists have stormed Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s office.
— ALX 🇺🇸 (@alx) September 11, 2023
I’m assuming these people will be locked up immediately, put on no fly lists, will have their houses raided and will be sentenced to years in prison, right?
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BREAKING: Far-left activists have stormed U.S. Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s office.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) September 11, 2023
A very sad day for Democracy… will they be thrown in prison for years on end for this?
The radical activists stormed McCarthy’s office to riot in favor of a 5 year reauthorization of PEPFAR, a… pic.twitter.com/OVB5jjEUgE
LGBT activists storm the office of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) September 12, 2023
Will they be charged with an insurrection?
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