The Des Moines Black Lives Matter/Black Liberation Movement put out a statement on Friday calling for the immediate removal of Republican State Sen. Zach Whiting.
Whiting’s offense, according to the group, was comparing “non-violent racial justice advocates lobbying for expanding voting rights to the violent insurrection carried out by white supremacists on Jan. 6 in Washington D.C.”
Now, having been in D.C. on the sixth, I can comfortably say it was not a “violent insurrection” carried out by “white supremacists.”
But whatever.
Whiting said that while BLM activists and their supporters were non-violently advocating for legislative change, “[We were] counting guns and bullets, cause we didn’t know if we were gonna make it out or if we were gonna have to shoot our way out. Our Capitol was under siege in June.”
Ironically, the Des Moines BLM organization is claiming that Whiting was exaggerating what happened — in a press release where they themselves exaggerate what happened in Washington D.C. on Jan. 6.
“The counting of guns and bullets raises great concerns for our safety at the statehouse, and especially the safety of any black people who may visit or lobby there,” Des Moines BLM said. “Our fear for our fellow freedom fighters has been heightened after a 15-year-old black girl was shot following a MAGA event at the Capitol. This knowledge that state lawmakers were calculating the violent deaths of non-violent community members is notably alarming.
“Any lawmaker who is threatening to shoot bullets at community members for advocating for expanding voting access to tens of thousands of people should not have the privilege of representing Iowans. Senator Whiting’s comments prove that he is unfit to serve Iowans and that he is a danger to the public.”
