Jan. 6 rallies in Triangle will recall U.S. Capitol attack and push for fair elections
Several events are planned across the Triangle on Thursday to mark the anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, as well as to push for free and fair elections.
Three events set for Raleigh and one each in Chapel Hill and Durham are among more than 150 planned across the nation to protest the siege on the Capitol Building when a pro-Donald Trump mob tried to stop the certification of the election of Joe Biden as president.
“Americans across race, place, party and backgrounds are holding vigils and rallies to say: In America, the voters decide the outcome of elections,” said a news release from the N.C. Poor People’s Campaign, which will hold a rally outside the Federal Building on New Bern Avenue in downtown Raleigh at 11:30 a.m. Thursday. A press conference will follow.
The North Carolina group is part of the National Poor People’s Campaign, which is pushing for passage of the Freedom to Vote Act, the Protecting Our Democracy Act and the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act — federal legislation aimed at preserving voting rights, preventing abuses of presidential power and international interference with elections, and other reforms.
Carolina Peace Center also will hold a press conference at 12:30 p.m. Thursday at Bicentennial Mall, 1 East Edenton Street in downtown Raleigh, to commemorate the assault on the Capitol and call for peace, unity and patriotism.
“It’s incumbent upon each of us as an American to preserve and protect our democracy and democratic institutions with our voting, advocating for equality and justice, community and civic engagement,” organizer Faisal Khan said in an email announcing the event.
Durham activists will hold a vigil at noon at the CCB Plaza at 201 Corcoran Street. Several state legislators are expected to participate.
On Thursday night, Triangle Daily Call to Action will hold a candlelight vigil on Bicentennial Plaza.
The vigil is billed as an event to bring together lawmakers, activists, and voters across race, gender and party lines to renew their commitment to supporting voting rights. It will run from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., and speakers will include Wake County lawmakers Sen. Jay Chaudhuri, Sen. Wiley Nickel and Rep. Julie von Haefen, as well as a 10-year-old from Spring Lake who will recite part of a speech given by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
The vigil will close out with a speech from Gerald D. Givens Jr., president of the Raleigh-Apex branch of the NAACP.
In Chapel Hill, activists will hold a candlelight vigil Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the intersection of Franklin and Columbia streets. The group will gather from 6 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at University United Methodist Church, 150 E. Franklin Street, to hear speakers talk about the proposed federal legislation.
This story was originally published January 5, 2022 at 1:46 PM.
