{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://veasey.house.gov//media-center/in-the-news/us-capitol-staffers-raise-hands-to-protest-grand-jury-decisions", "US Capitol staffers raise hands to protest grand jury decisions", "2014-12-11", "2014", "2014-12", "Democrat", "House", "TX", "Marc Veasey", "V000131", "veasey.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON \u2014 A gathering of black congressional staffers and other Capitol employees stood silently on the House steps Thursday and raised their hands in the air to protest of the killing of unarmed black men by police.\nThey bowed their heads as Senate Chaplain Barry C. Black prayed, \u2018\u2018Forgive us when we have failed to lift our voices for those who couldn\u2019t speak or breathe for themselves\u2019\u2019 \u2014 emphasizing \u2018\u2018breathe\u2019\u2019 in reference to Eric Garner, who died after a policeman grabbed him in a chokehold in New York.\n\u2018\u2018May we not forget that in our history injustice has often been maintained because good people failed to promptly act,\u2019\u2019 Black said, with well over 100 people standing behind him.\nThe demonstration was organized by the Congressional Black Associates and other groups representing minority employees of Congress to show support for protests around the country following the deaths of Garner and 18-year-old Michael Brown, who was black, in Ferguson, Missouri.\nOn the grounds nearby, Valerie Bell \u2014 the mother of Sean Bell, shot in New York on the morning of his wedding \u2014 watched with other mothers whose sons were killed by police. Nine mothers have been meeting with Congress members and Washington officials this week asking for an end to police brutality against black men.\n\u2018\u2018We stand with them, and they stand with us,\u2019\u2019 Bell said as the congressional employees gathered outside in the cold.\nAfter the brief event, Black said the workers were exercising their free speech rights \u2018\u2018to say that there are some issues that are significantly critical, that there needs to be a greater conversation.\u2019\u2019\nThe wordless demonstrators also included Reps. Joaquin Castro and Marc Veasey, both Democrats representing Texas, and Rep. Elijah Cummings, a Maryland Democrat.\n\u2018\u2018There is no community that is immune to police abuse,\u2019\u2019 Castro, a second generation Mexican-American, said afterward. \u2018\u2018It is happening in every community. It is more concentrated in minority communities, particularly the African-American community, but this is something that all Americans are concerned about.\u2019\u2019", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://veasey.house.gov//media-center/in-the-news/us-capitol-staffers-raise-hands-to-protest-grand-jury-decisions"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 43.85964083485305, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}