DisruptJ20
![]() DisruptJ20 poster | |
Purpose | Disrupting the Inauguration of Donald Trump Protesting the Presidency of Donald Trump |
---|---|
Website | www |
DisruptJ20 (also Disrupt J20) is a Washington, D.C.-based political organization founded in July 2016 and publicly launched on November 11 of the same year. Its initial aim was protesting and disrupting events of the presidential inauguration of the 45th U.S. President, Donald Trump, which occurred on January 20, 2017. The protests organized and encouraged by the DisruptJ20 group were a part of a wider array of protests initiated by a variety of individuals and groups, in Washington, DC and nationwide; from a more extensive initial plan, deployments by DisruptJ20 at the inauguration eventually included efforts, at least, to blockade one bridge, and to attempt to shut down security checkpoints. Reports immediately prior to and following the event indicated success by James O'Keefe and Project Veritas to infiltrate DisruptJ20's planned inauguration efforts.[1]
Description
A Washington, D.C.-based political organization, DisruptJ20 (also appearing with an inserted space before "J20") had the initial stated aim of protesting and disrupting events of the inauguration of Donald Trump as 45th President of The United States.[2] One organizer of the DisruptJ20 protests, Alli McCracken, stated that the group is protesting Trump's views on women, undocumented immigrants and Muslims. Al Jazeera described the members of the organization as "liberal activists".[3] Steven Nelson of the U.S. News & World Report, after interviews with organizers and representatives, described it in December 2016 as the "more radical protest-organizing network DisruptJ20, which has more than 1,700 Facebook group members."[4] A representative of the organization[who?] has stated that it would also have demonstrated had Hillary Clinton won the 2016 presidential election.[5]
History and protest planning
DisruptJ20 was founded around July 2016, about six months before Trump's inauguration.[6] "J20" was chosen to stand for January 20, the scheduled day of the 2017 inauguration.[7] DisruptJ20 was publicly launched on November 11, 2016 with a YouTube video and social media accounts.[2] It and its aims were described in an interview with Legba Carrefour, "an organizer with DisruptJ20,"[8][9][10] as
an umbrella coalition of groups with a core of local organizers who have a lot of activist experience. Washington, D.C. organizers ... most of whom are anarchists. ... The idea ... is we want to undermine Trump's presidency from the get-go. There has been a lot of talk of peaceful transition of power as being a core element in a democracy and we want to reject that entirely and really undermine the peaceful transition.[8]
According to Nelson of the U.S. News, the DisruptJ20s website in December 2016 associated the organisation with the "DC Welcoming Committee [DCWC] collective" (describing it as "being assisted by" the DCWC) and Nelson reports that DisruptJ20, at this time, involved individuals from an array of progressive groups (as individuals, rather than representing their groups).[4] Nelson quotes Carrefour, who he describes as "a local anarchist handling press" for DisruptJ20, as indicating that "more than 200 people attended an organizing meeting at a local church ... on short notice" and that photographs "show[ed] supporters representing a range of ages and interests."[4] Regarding intent, Carrefour stated to Nelson,
We are planning to shut down the inauguration, that's the short of it ... We're pretty literal about that, we are trying to create citywide paralysis on a level that I don't think has been seen in D.C. before. We're trying to shut down pretty much every ingress into the city as well as every checkpoint around the actual inauguration parade route.[11][4][6]
On January 14, 2017, about a hundred demonstrators met at the American University to plan and prepare their protests.[7][12] Carrefour described their plans for inauguration week, beginning the weekend of January 14–15, 2017 ("MLK weekend"), indicating that DisruptJ20 was:
- holding "an Action Camp ... doing a lot of non-violent direct action trainings" on that weekend;
- sponsoring a "queer dance party" at the residence of Vice President Mike Pence, on Wednesday, January 18;
- arranging an "action" for the DeploraBall—described as an "Alt-Right Trump inaugural ball"—on Thursday, January 19, with the aim of "trying to shut that down";
- having, on the 20th, inauguration day, "blockades ... at all the checkpoints around the inauguration parade route and to get into the viewing area ... transit blockades all day ... several unpermitted marches, an especially big one at Logan Circle" at 10 A.M., and a permitted march at 12 P.M., as well as events going on throughout inauguration evening."[8][6]
After the January 14 meetings, James O'Keefe of Project Veritas posted a video shot at pizzeria Comet Ping Pong in the capital showing members of the DC Antifascist Coalition, a part of DisruptJ20, planning to disrupt the DeploraBall at the National Press Building on January 19—through use of stink bombs (of butyric acid) and activation of the building's sprinkler system.[12][13][14] DisruptJ20 countered that it had caught on to the Veritas operation and had thus fed its operative a false plot;[12][13] however, based on the video, the DC police arrested a man associated with the group[clarification needed] on January 19, 2017 for his alleged planning to disrupt the DeploraBall.[15][16][17] Veritas released a second part to the video showing DisruptJ20 participants discussing their plans to create blockades for bridges and trains; as a result of the latter video, a DisruptJ20 organizer[who?] announced that the group would scale back on their blockade efforts, and only shut down one bridge.[18][19]
Inauguration actions, eve and day
This section needs expansion with: a better description based on published sources of what was actually accomplished by DisruptJ20, during inauguration week—what protests actually transpired, where. NOTE, content should only be from sources explicitly citing DisruptJ20 (i.e., association with DJ20 must be explicit, and not assumed). You can help by adding to it. (February 2017) |
DisruptJ20's efforts in Washington, D.C. were a part of a wider array of nationwide protests, ranging from peaceful to anarchic.[citation needed] Events included nationwide rallies such as Our First Stand: Save Our Health Care (organized by congressional Democrats and health care activists) and Poets Protest Against Trump (by such artists, on local city hall steps), both the weekend before the inauguration; the celebrity Love-a-thon (a Facebook-broadcast fund-raiser for liberal causes, featuring a number of film actors) on inauguration day, and the Women's March on Washington [D.C.] and hundreds of sister marches nationwide, the day following the inauguration.[20]
The DisruptJ20 protests were specific actions, organized in Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland in particular.[20] A number of their protest activities occurred throughout Washington on January 19–20, 2017.[where?][citation needed] Protests involving DisruptJ20 members from a variety of groups[clarification needed] occurred at the National Press Building during the day and into the evening, on the January 19.[citation needed] On January 20, DisruptJ20 participants linked arms at security checkpoints,[where?] attempting to shut down flow into the inauguration through these checkpoints.[21][verification needed] A post-event press release from DisuruptJ20, reported on by The Washington Post, state that "climate justice activists" numbering ca. 400 participated in physically blocking the inauguration security checkpoints, including a four-hour block of the checkpoint at 3rd and D Streets NW.[22] The statement indicated, "[our] work is done."[22] In addition, DisruptJ20-associated attempts to block traffic through a sit-in occurred at the intersection of 12th and K Streets NW.[citation needed]
Broad responses to the effort
This section needs expansion with: a source-driven summary of positive/supportive and negative/condemnatory comments that that appeared before and after the inauguration, including editorial statements from major venues that addressed the Disrupt20 aims and activities. You can help by adding to it. (February 2017) |
Comments both supportive and judgmental have appeared around the DisruptJ20 inauguration activities. Activist filmmaker Michael Moore indicated support for their efforts in the two cities, via Twitter.[20]
Publications ranged in opinion from support to criticism. The presentation from The Huffington Post took the form of an information article directing interested readers to the DisruptJ20 web page, and to various protests in which they could participate.[20]
Post-inauguration activities
As of the first week of February 2017, the organization was reporting efforts to support individuals arrested for January 20 activities, in particular, fund-raising and legal support activities.[23][better source needed]
Those arrested on Inauguration Day were charged with rioting, and were released pending a court date.[24][25] A class action lawsuit was filed for false arrest, and excessive force.[26][27][28][29] On April 3, 2017, the Metropolitan Police Department raided the house of a DisruptJ20 activist as part of its "investigation into the conspiracy to riot."[30][31]
In late November 2017, six people charged with rioting went on trial. Prosecutors alleged that these six people were taking part in DisruptJ20 protests and vandalism.[32] A jury trial found the six defendants not guilty on all counts in December 2017.[33] On January 18, 2018, the U.S. Justice Department dropped charges against 129 people, leaving 59 defendants to face charges related to the DisruptJ20 protest.[34] By early July 2018, federal prosecutors had dropped all charges against all defendants in the case.[35]
DoJ search warrant
On 17 July 2017, the US Department of Justice served DreamHost, the company hosting the DisruptJ20 website, with a search warrant[36] for all information held about the site.[37] The information requested in the warrant included the IP addresses of 1.3 million people who visited the site, as well as the date and time of their visit and information about the browser and operating system.[37] In addition to this, the contact information, email content and photos of thousands of people was requested.[38] DreamHost announced on August 14, 2017, that they would challenge the warrant in court, stating that "Chris Ghazarian, our General Counsel, has taken issue with this particular search warrant for being a highly untargeted demand that chills free association and the right of free speech afforded by the Constitution."[39] The Electronic Frontier Foundation said that the warrant was "unconstitutional" and "a fishing expedition".[37]
On October 10, 2017, Chief Judge Morin of the Washington, D.C. Superior Court issued the court’s final order, with what Dreamhost blog calls "significant changes that will protect the constitutional rights of innocent internet users worldwide." As for the prospect for an appeal, Dreamhost has said, "There's really no need. Any sweeping requests for data that could personally identify website visitors not directly related to an ongoing criminal investigation are now off the table. It's sort of a moot point!"[40]
See also
- Inauguration of Donald Trump protests
- Protests against Donald Trump
- Washington A16, 2000
- January 20, 2005 counter-inaugural protest against the second presidential inauguration of George W. Bush
References
- ^ Hermann, Peter (January 25, 2017). "Meetings of activists planning to disrupt inauguration were infiltrated by conservative group". Retrieved December 22, 2017 – via www.WashingtonPost.com.
- ^ a b Keefe, Josh (January 7, 2017). "Stop Donald Trump? #DisruptJ20 Wants To Shut Down Inauguration Day Parade". International Business Times. Retrieved February 3, 2017.
- ^ Al Jazeera Staff (January 21, 2017). "Donald Trump Sworn in as 45th US President". Al Jazeera English. Retrieved January 21, 2017.
- ^ a b c d Nelson, Steven (December 15, 2016). "Anti-Trump Activists Plan Road-Blocking 'Clusterf--k' for Inauguration". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved February 3, 2017 – via USNews.com.
[Subtitle:] A moderate effort plans to picket the parade route, but a more radical rabble seeks to shut down the show.
- ^ "Violence Flares in Washington During Trump Inauguration". Reuters.com. January 21, 2017. Retrieved January 21, 2017.
{{cite news}}
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ignored (help) - ^ a b c For support for this quote's content, see "D.C. braces for protesters during Trump's inauguration week". News 7 Kwwl. January 17, 2017. Retrieved January 21, 2017.
- ^ a b King, James (January 19, 2017). "At Activist Training Camp, Protesters Prep To Disrupt Inauguration". Vocativ.com. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
{{cite web}}
: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|work=
(help) - ^ a b c Jaffe, Sarah (January 19, 2017). "Interviews for Resistance: A Conversation with Legba Carrefour". The Baffler. Retrieved February 3, 2017.
- ^ While an individual with this name appears on various social media accounts (e.g., Twitter and Flickr), the existence of clear references in both the given name and the surname, to Haitian voodoo, directly via Legba and indirectly via Carrefour, make it possible that this participant's name is a pseudonym or nom de guerre. See this participant at Twitter, etc., and see the linked articles on the apparent direct and indirect voodoo references.
- ^ There is no report as of February 1, 2017 that this individual bears any relation to the French multinational retailer, Carrefour.
- ^ Carrefour also described their aims in more colorful terms, which were widely, if only partially, reported, e.g., "So, we're going for what I'd generally term a clusterf--k," see Nelson, U.S. News, December 15, 2016.
- ^ a b c Freed, Benjamin (January 16, 2017). "Activist Group: Stink-Bomb Plot Was Meant to Fool James O'Keefe". Washingtonian.com. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
{{cite web}}
: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|work=
(help) - ^ a b Palma, Bethania (January 18, 2017). "James O'Keefe and Progressive Group 'Sting' Each Other". Snopes.com. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
- ^ Veritas Staff; James O'Keefe , presenter (January 16, 2017). Part I: Undercover Investigation Exposes Groups Plotting Criminal Activity at Trump Inauguration. Mamaroneck, NY: Veritas Visuals. Retrieved February 5, 2017 – via YouTube.
- ^ Hermann, Peter (January 20, 2017). "Protesters vowed to shut down the city. Police vowed to protect the inauguration". Washington Post. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
- ^ Noble, Andrea (January 20, 2017). "Arrested activist featured in Project Veritas inauguration video". Washington Times. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
- ^ Hermann, Peter (January 24, 2017). "Meetings of activists planning to disrupt inauguration were infiltrated by conservative group". Washington Post. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
- ^ Nelson, Steven (January 17, 2017). "Anti-Trump DisruptJ20 Activists Scale Back Inauguration Blockade Plans". U.S. News. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
- ^ Veritas Staff; James O'Keefe , presenter (January 18, 2017). Part II: New Investigation Uncovers Plot to Chain the Trains and Shut Down DC During Inauguration. Mamaroneck, NY: Veritas Visuals. Retrieved February 5, 2017 – via YouTube.
- ^ a b c d Miller, Hayley (January 13, 2017). "Looking For Anti-Trump Protests? Here Are Dozens To Choose From". The Huffington Post. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
- ^ Laughland, Oliver; Siddiqui, Sabrina; Gambino, Lauren (January 20, 2017). "Inauguration protests: more than 200 demonstrators arrested in Washington". The Guardian. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
- ^ a b Hedgpeth, Dana (January 20, 2017). "Protesters Using Hashtag #DisruptJ20 Says Their Work is Done and Here's What They Did". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
- ^ DJ20 Volunteers (February 4, 2017). "Dear Friends" (website posting). DisruptJ20.org. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
[Quote:] The #DisruptJ20 crew is 100% dedicated to supporting all of those arrested through the entire legal process. Our organizers and legal team are working together to figure out how to best support everyone moving forward and will be communicating with you more in the coming weeks before the first court dates to assess needs and get input. / Our legal fund is off to a great start, and we know lots of people are making t-shirts, organizing shows, and finding creative ways to raise money to support all of the folks who were arrested.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "People arrested during Inauguration Day protests could go to prison for 10 years over felony rioting charges". Retrieved February 13, 2017.
- ^ Lennard, Natasha (April 12, 2017). "How the Government Is Turning Protesters Into Felons". Esquire. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
- ^ "Lawyer Swept up in Protest Sues for Inauguration Arrests". Strategist. Retrieved February 13, 2017.
- ^ CNN, Gregory Krieg. "Police injured, more than 200 arrested at Trump inauguration protests". CNN. Retrieved February 13, 2017.
{{cite web}}
:|last=
has generic name (help) - ^ "Lawsuit filed against police in DC after Inauguration Day arrests". WTOP. January 23, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2017.
- ^ "Class-action suit filed over police response to inaugural protests". POLITICO. Retrieved February 13, 2017.
- ^ Berbert, James (April 7, 2017). "Democracy in Crisis: D.C. Police Raid J20 Activist's Home". Washington City Paper. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
- ^ "D.C. police infiltrated inauguration protest group, court papers show". Washington Post. Retrieved April 19, 2017.
- ^ Alexander, Keith L.; Duggan, Paul (November 20, 2017). "Inauguration protesters were 'playing a role in the violence and destruction,' prosecutor says". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ Shugerman, Emily (December 21, 2017). "Anti-Trump activists found innocent, avoiding decades in prison for protesting". The Independent. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
- ^ Shugerman, Emily (January 18, 2018). "Justice Department drops charges against 129 people involved in J20 Trump inauguration day protests". The Independent. Retrieved January 19, 2018.
- ^ Raymond, Adam K. (July 6, 2018). "Charges Dropped Against Remaining J20 Inauguration Day Protesters". New York Magazine. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
- ^ "Superior Court of the District Of Columbia Search Warrant" (PDF). Superior Court of the District Of Columbia.
- ^ a b c Wong, Julia Carrie; Solon, Olivia (August 15, 2017). "US government demands details on all visitors to anti-Trump protest website". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
- ^ "DreamHost fights government request seeking 1.3 million IP addresses of DisruptJ20 website visitors". VentureBeat. August 15, 2017. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
- ^ "We Fight for the Users - DreamHost.blog". DreamHost.blog. August 14, 2017. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
- ^ "The End of the Road - DreamHost.blog". DreamHost.blog. October 10, 2017. Retrieved October 11, 2017.
Further reading
- Kurzius, Rachel (January 27, 2017). "U.S. Attorney Drops Felony Charge Against One Journalist Covering Inauguration Protest". DCist.com. New York, NY: Gothamist LLC. Archived from the original on January 30, 2017. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
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suggested) (help) - Palma, Bethania (January 25, 2017). "D.C. Police Arrest Activist After James O'Keefe Video Sting". Snopes.com. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
- Hermann Peter & Miller, Michael E., with Alexander, Keith L. & Duggan, Paul (January 23, 2017). "Denver Defense Attorney Leads Lawsuit Alleging Washington, D.C. police Trapped, Then Arrested Inauguration Day Protesters". Denver Post. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
[Subtitle:] Jason Flores-Williams served as DisruptJ20s legal adviser
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) This article is a re-publication of the identical article by same authors, from THe Washington Post from the day earlier, but with a new revelatory title added. - Hermann Peter & Miller, Michael E., with Alexander, Keith L. & Duggan, Paul (January 22, 2017). "Defense Attorneys Allege Police Trapped and Then Arrested Protesters". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - "Protesters Who Destroyed Property on Inauguration Day were Part of Well-Organized Group". The Washington Post. January 21, 2017. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
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External links
Media related to DisruptJ20 at Wikimedia Commons