Left-wing climate protesters staged a protest Wednesday in the National Archives by dumping red powder on themselves and the case that protest the U.S. Constitution. Security officers quickly arrested the activists and evacuated the National Archives Rotunda.
A statement released Wednesday by the National Archives explained that the National Archives Rotunda and the National Archives galleries in Washington, D.C., would be closed for the remainder of the day after two individuals “dumped red powder on the encasement protecting the U.S. Constitution” at roughly 2:30 p.m.
The National Archives noted that the two individuals responsible for the attempted vandalization of the U.S. Constitution were “immediately detained” by security officers. An investigation into Wednesday’s incident remains ongoing.
“The Constitution was unaffected in its encasement. No damage was done to the document itself,” the National Archives press release stated. “The agency’s conservators were onsite within minutes and are conducting a thorough evaluation of the damage to the Rotunda.”
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Ford Fischer, a journalist with News2Share, shared a video of Wednesday’s protest in the National Archives Rotunda on X, formerly Twitter. In the video, the activists can be seen covered in red powder and declaring that they are “determined to foment a rebellion.”
“We will not be held account to laws in which we have no voice or representation,” one of the protesters said. The protesters claimed they were protesting for “all people” to have the rights guaranteed to Americans by the U.S. Constitution, suggesting that “only wealthy white men” currently enjoy those rights.
The left-wing activists called on President Joe Biden to “declare a climate emergency” and claimed that Americans need to initiate immediate changes to preserve the climate.
Fischer’s video also shows security officers at the National Archives quickly evacuating the area and arresting the two climate activists.
Following Wednesday’s incident, Dr. Colleen Shogan, archivist of the United States, issued a statement condemning the actions of the two climate protesters and highlighting the severity of vandalism against the “sanctuary” of America’s founding documents.
“The National Archives Rotunda is the sanctuary for our nation’s founding documents. They are here for all Americans to view and understand the principles of our nation,” Shogan wrote. “We take such vandalism very seriously and we will insist that the perpetrators be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
