Virginia gun rally: Trump shows support for activists as thousands descend on Richmond on Martin Luther King Jr Day
Protestors campaign for their right to bear arms
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Your support makes all the difference.Thousands of guns rights activists descended on Capitol Square in Richmond, Virginia, for a rally after the state Senate passed a series of bills limiting the purchasing of firearms and establishing mandatory background checks.
Gun owners rallied on the streets amid heavy security, with many demonstrators holding weapons, pro-gun rights banners and wearing camouflage clothing. Activists were campaigning for their right to bear arms, which is protected by the Second Amendment of the constitution.
Governor Ralph Northam (D-VA) declared a state of emergency and temporarily banned guns on capitol grounds as the Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) held its annual Lobby Day demonstrations on Martin Luther King Jr Day.
The demonstrations come less than a week after the gun control measures were advanced in the state legislature, setting up for a contentious showdown between gun owners attending the rally and counter-protestors calling for common sense reforms in Virginia, known for its lax gun laws.
Donald Trump tweeted a message shortly before the rally officially began appearing to support the protestors. The president said: “The Democrat Party in the Great Commonwealth of Virginia are working hard to take away your 2nd Amendment rights”, followed by a call for people to vote Republican in the 2020 US election.
The FBI arrested multiple suspected neo-Nazis in the build-up to the event, who had reportedly discussed opening fire at the demonstrations and were anticipating a possible race war.
There were initially fears of a second Charlottesville -- when a white supremacist rally turned deadly in Virginia nearly three years ago -- but it was ultimately a peaceful, albeit tense, event.
Catch-up on events as they happened
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Chris Riotta: The crowd is mostly dissipating near the Capitol grounds after a peaceful, albeit tense Lobby Day in Richmond. Remaining gun owners are lining up near the fenced grounds as an apparent show of force against the recent laws passed by the state legislature.
Ernest Coverson, Amnesty International USA's End Gun Violence campaign manager, tells The Independent in a statement the Lobby Day rally is "creating a climate of fear".
"When extremists and white supremacists are able to use guns to intimidate and harass marginalised communities, they create a climate of fear and inflict serious harm without even needing to pull the trigger," he said. "The vile decision to hold such a rally on a day when our country recognises the life of Reverend Dr Martin Luther King Jr, a peaceful civil rights leader whose life ended in gun violence, is particularly troubling."
Chris Riotta: This demonstrator was doing his best to get a chant going that said "Racist Ralphie has got to go," referring to Virginia Governor Ralph Northam's blackface scandal.
Credit: The Independent
The demonstrators at Lobby Day are carrying an array of firearms, from .50 caliber rifles - which can pierce through the outer hull of an M4 Sherman tank - to your typical glocks and semi-automatics.
American military music customs play as the guns rights activists march through the streets.
The annual Lobby Day demonstrations in Virginia so far seem to have gone off without any violence, but that isn’t to say that tensions were high throughout the state capitol.
The crowds routinely mocked and chided media personnel as they covered the event, chanting “Fake News!” and “Liars!” at journalists on the scene. On a personal note, I tucked away some of my gear and reporter’s notebook for safety after repeatedly being called a “Fake News f*****” about a hundred yards away from the Capitol grounds. As an LGBTQ+ reporter, the insults were distressing, albeit part of the job.
For the most part, however, people were happy to speak with me and have their cause documented.
Guns rights activists are now lining the streets right outside of the Capitol grounds in separate, unorganised groups, as police clear out the area. The demonstrators all seem to leave willingly when asked by authorities to clear the streets. It's unclear what the exact purpose of this show of force besides garnering media attention.
Police are clearing out the area after Lobby Day went off seemingly without any physical violence.
As many noted, this wasn’t just a demonstration in support of the 2nd Amendment - it was in support of the 1st as well. These folks definitely made sure their voices were heard.
That's all for our live coverage of the rally - thank you for reading along.
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