“Don’t Fence The Capitol, which launched its “Don’t Build a Permanent Security Fence Around the Capitol” petition a month ago, has collected 27,000 signatures as of Friday, with the website currently setting a goal of 35,000 signatures. You can join the petition by clicking here.
The petition’s rationale is, “A permanent fence that punishes us, the people, by keeping us from seeing the people’s parliament and from entering the people’s parliament.”
The petition denounces the permanent wall as “a permanent scar on our beautiful city” that prevents people and visitors from entering “the beautiful beacon of democracy.”
The petition pointedly noted that “the wall and fence proved to be an ineffective deterrent to the insurgents who stormed the Capitol that day. Walls and fences, which punish more than the domestic terrorists involved in the attack, do not adequately protect Congress, nor do they change the systemic governance problems in Washington, DC. “
The “Don’t Block the Capitol” group began as residents of the Capitol Hill community, but its reach and mission go far beyond that. Just as the Capitol is the people’s parliament, the beautiful area near the Capitol is the people’s park, the place where all Americans have peacefully gathered and demonstrated since the founding of the United States. For two centuries, the Capitol has been America’s primary forum for speeches, celebrations and outdoor advocacy of all kinds. We must not let this tradition just disappear without a word.
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