The National Archives Rotunda will be closed until Friday after environmental activists threw red powder into a protective display case containing the U.S. Constitution.
The National Archives originally announced that the Rotunda would be closed to the public for the rest of Wednesday and would reopen on Thursday. The Rotunda is currently closed on Thursdays and Fridays for cleaning.
The rest of the National Archives will remain open as usual.
Climate change activists threw red powder at a protective display case containing the US Constitution. (Ford Fisher)
The National Archives building and galleries were evacuated Wednesday afternoon after two protesters dumped red powder on the U.S. Constitution’s protective case around 2:30 p.m.
There was no damage to the Constitution itself.
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A video posted online shows two men covered in reddish-pink powder standing in front of a similarly splattered horizontal glass case that houses the Constitution. .
The suspects were arrested within minutes. (Ford Fisher)
“We are determined to incite a rebellion,” says one man. “We all have the right to clean air, water, food and a livable climate.”
The duo were arrested within minutes.
“The National Archives Rotunda is a sanctuary for our nation’s founding documents. They are here for all Americans to view and understand our nation’s ideals,” said U.S. Archivist Colleen Shogan in a statement. mentioned in. “We take this type of vandalism very seriously and will insist that perpetrators be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
