A GOP representative on Wednesday slammed the Democrats for staging a sit-in on the House floor to push for action on gun control legislation.
“Calling this a sit-in is a disgrace to Woolworth’s,” Rep. Mark Walker (R-N.C.) tweeted, referring to the 1960 protests at a lunch counter that helped kick off the Civil Rights Movement.
{mosads}The sit-ins at the Woolworth store in Greensboro, N.C., were staged to protest the store’s policy of racial segregation.
On Wednesday, dozens of Democrats participated in a sit-in to press for action on gun control before the House leaves at the end of the week for a planned recess.
Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), the veteran lawmaker who was brutally beaten by police in the 1965 civil rights march in Selma, Ala., began the sit-in by giving a speech while surrounded by his colleagues.
“We have turned deaf ears to the blood of the innocent and the deaths in our nation,” he said. “Mr, Speaker, where is the heart of this body. Where is our soul?
“How many more mothers, how many more fathers have to share tears of grief before we decide to do anything?”
Democratic lawmakers then sat down on the floor of the chamber — and said they would stay until GOP leaders allow a vote on gun legislation.
The House was then gaveled into recess, and the chamber’s C-SPAN cameras were turned off.