“The arrest of Bishop Barber feels like the most clear example of hypocrisy of the Trump administration when they talk about anti-Christian bias,” Raushenbush said. “They are not interested in the broad expression of faith as exemplified by Bishop Barber, but rather only Christians approved of by the Trump administration.”
The arrests followed a rally nearby outside the U.S. Supreme Court building, where Barber rallied with other clergy and faith leaders, as well as federal workers who lost their jobs, to condemn the GOP-led budget.
Speakers at the rally, which was organized by Repairers of the Breach, focused specifically on how the budget would impact women and children. Among those who addressed the crowd at the rally or press beforehand were: the Rev. Teresa Hord Owens, general minister and president of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ); Sheila Katz, CEO of the National Council of Jewish Women; Imam Talib M. Shareef, president and imam of historic Masjid Muhammad, also known as “the Nation’s Mosque”; Marc H. Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League; and Sarah Anderson with the Institute for Policy Studies.
“Forty-three percent of women and almost half of all children are poor and low income,” Barber told the crowd, citing an assessment of Economic Policy Institute data. “Somebody ought to say something … Somebody gotta challenge this budget.”
Speakers expressed particular concerns about potential cuts to Medicaid, for which some conservatives have advocated. But on Monday, speakers such as Anderson noted a dozen House Republicans recently sent a letter to Speaker Mike Johnson opposing cuts to Medicaid.
“Soften the hearts of representatives, like the 12 who wrote to the speaker today,” Wilson-Hartgrove, an author and activist, said while praying in the Rotunda. “Twelve Republicans asking their speaker to not cut Medicaid. We ask you to move all those hearts, Lord.”
The protest was the beginning of a “Moral Monday” campaign that Barber said he hopes will feature demonstrations every week moving forward. It’s an approach to activism the pastor has used to great effect in the past. Today’s protest was launched on the 12-year anniversary of the original Moral Monday protest movement he organized in North Carolina in 2013, which was credited with helping unseat the governor in that state.
A Repairers of the Breach spokesperson acknowledged in a statement that the three people were arrested in the Rotunda after the rally, while “practicing their First Amendment rights.”
“On this, the first Moral Monday in D.C., faith leaders and impacted people came to the people’s house to demand a moral budget — one that lifts from the bottom, prioritizing poor and low-wage people, women, children and workers,” the statement said.
The police response to the group’s actions on Monday contrasted sharply with another worship service in the same space in March 2023, when far-right musician and activist Sean Feucht led an evening worship service that included participation from lawmakers such as Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.). Unlike Barber’s prayer service, Feucht’s took place in the evening after most people had left the Capitol, and whether or not it was sanctioned is unclear: Feucht has claimed to have “snuck in” to the Rotunda to hold worship on multiple occasions, but Capitol Police declined to specify whether the specific incident was permitted.
However, Feucht’s event was significantly longer than Barber’s brief prayer session, and while police occasionally spoke with participants, no one was arrested.
, an action he said would be part of a recurring series of demonstrations aimed at challenging the Republican-led budget bill.){kind=link}