15 Arrested During Sit-In at U.S. Capitol Women’s Restroom
Chelsea Manning and Raquel Willis were among those arrested for peacefully protesting outside Speaker Mike Johnson's office.
At least fifteen activists were arrested by U.S. Capitol police following a December 5 sit-in protesting House Speaker Mike Johnson’s policy banning transgender individuals from using restrooms that align with their gender identity.
The group, which included former U.S. Army soldier Chelsea Manning and Raquel Willis, co-founder of Gender Liberation Movement, displayed a pink banner with the words “Flush Bathroom Bigotry” in front of the stalls of the women’s bathroom.
The group later moved to Johnson’s Capitol office, where they sat on the floor in protest, while a group of male and nonbinary allies unfurled a yellow banner.”Congress: Stop pissing on our rights!” the banner read.
The protesters chanted, “Speaker Johnson, Nancy Mace, our genders are no debate!” referring to the fact that Johnson imposed a new rule in response to a resolution from Mace that sought to ban transgender women — specifically, U.S. Rep.-elect Sarah McBride (D-Del.) — from female-designated spaces within the U.S. Capitol complex.
Under the rule, all individuals wishing to enter multi-user restrooms, locker rooms, or changing areas must use only those facilities that align with their assigned sex at birth. McBride, who will become the first out transgender congressperson, said she will abide by the policy.
Mace, meanwhile, has introduced a bill that seeks to apply the Capitol restroom ban to all public buildings on federal properties across the nation.
Questions remain about how the Capitol restroom policy will be enforced — especially since most transgender restroom users will not be publicly engaging in acts of civil disobedience or drawing attention to themselves when attempting to use facilities that align with their gender identity.
“Everyone deserves to use the restroom without fear of discrimination or violence,” Willis said in a statement to The Advocate. “Trans folks are no different. We deserve dignity and respect and we will fight until we get it.”
Willis told the publication that “in the 2024 election, trans folks were left to fend for ourselves after nearly $200 million of attack ads were disseminated across the United States. Now, as Republican politicians try to remove us from public life, Democratic leaders are silent as hell. But we can’t transform bigotry and hate with inaction. We must confront it head on. Democrats must rise up, filibuster, and block this bill.”
Manning, a former U.S. military intelligence analyst who was imprisoned for seven years after leaking classified and sensitive files about U.S. overseas military operations to WikiLeaks, but was later released after then-President Obama commuted her sentence, recalled her own struggles to receive gender-affirming care while imprisoned and have her gender identity recognized as valid.
“I’m here today because every person deserves dignity and respect, both in daily life and in more symbolic places like the U.S. Capitol,” she said. “As someone who has fought against similar rules, I know what it’s like to feel pushed aside and erased. But I also know the incredible power and resilience our community has…. We didn’t start this fight, but we are together now.”
Mace has cast herself as a defender of women in her latest crusade. She mocked Manning on social media, writing on X, “From leaking state secrets to taking leaks in the women’s restroom, just can’t seem to get it right.”
Mace also filmed herself outside U.S. Capitol police headquarters, using a bullhorn to read the Miranda warning, which she directed against the arrested protesters.
Here’s what @RepNancyMace was using her bullhorn for … reading the Miranda warning for the protesters who showed up to the Capitol today to protest her bathroom bill
I’m told there is now a demonstration outside Mace’s office as well pic.twitter.com/Hn67i7Bg5o
— Cami Mondeaux (@cami_mondeaux) December 5, 2024
A spokesperson for Gender Liberation Movement told The Advocate that those arrested remain detained.
The sit-in comes a day after a separate group of transgender activists and allies filmed themselves dancing in the Capitol women’s restroom to the song “Meeting in the Ladies Room.” They were also protesting the transgender bathroom ban. However, none were arrested by Capitol police, despite provoking the anger of right-wing commenters on social media.
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