After The White House Protested With A Scaling Crane, The Father Of A Parkland Victim Was Taken Into Custody
On the fourth anniversary of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school shooting in Florida, which killed 17 people and injured 17, the father of a Parkland shooting victim was arrested after ascending a construction crane near the White House in a protest against gun violence.
Manuel Oliver, whose 17-year-old son Joaquin "Guac" Oliver was killed in the country's deadliest high school massacre, said he climbed the 150-foot crane "so the entire world will listen to Joaquin today."
Oliver unfurled a banner atop the crane that featured a photo of his kid and a message to Joe Biden that read, "45K people killed from gun violence on your watch."
The crane was encircled by police, and the 600 block of 15th Street Northwest was shut down.
"I went to DC in December and asked to meet with @POTUS. GUAC is here with me today, making [his] own statement! So that the entire country can assess our reality. In front of the [White House], 150 feet high. Acting in a peaceful manner. "Police are on the scene!" This morning, Oliver sent a tweet.
Images of Oliver being apprehended by cops quickly surfaced on social media. Change the Ref, his non-profit advocacy organisation, verified that he had been arrested. His charges are still unknown.
"This isn't a local problem; it's a federal one that needs to be fixed here in DC." Of course, we want to get the White House's attention... "There's no way to say 'I couldn't see the message' because the message was really short and obvious," she explained.
Patricia Oliver said she and her husband are interested in hearing what Biden has to say on gun control during his first State of the Union address next month.
"I'd want to attend." I overheard him say that he'd done some preventative measures. There are many words on the table, but no action is taken, she said.