The Rev. Al Sharpton on Thursday compared the current pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot and accused Democrats of having double standards when it comes to the demonstrations.
“When what we’re protesting becomes secondary, in many ways, we’re not actually protesting for the sake of it,” Sharpton said Thursday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” It’s dramatizing it.”
“What I did in other situations was to draw attention to the cause, not to become the cause. What bothers me about a lot of things this time is that they were the cause. It’s about them. It’s not about pushing a cause,” Sharpton said, adding later, “If you’re seeing similar things happening on college campuses, you’re talking about Democrats and their side. How can all of us here say January 6th was wrong?”
Hundreds of students and faculty members protested on college campuses across the United States, calling for a ceasefire in the Israeli-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip and for universities and the United States to sever ties with Israel.
The protests have been largely peaceful, but culminated this week when protesters occupied a Columbia University building, forcing New York City police officers to move in and break up the demonstration.
On the West Coast, counter-protesters at the University of California, Los Angeles, attempted to forcibly remove a pro-Palestinian camp, leading to violent skirmishes Tuesday night. After hours of threats of arrest, police entered the campsite early Thursday and began dismantling tents.
Mr Sharpton argued that the message of the protests was being lost amidst the violence.
“If they are honest, they need to ask themselves, are you really focused on what’s going on in Gaza, on the children, on the women, on the innocent people?” Mr. Sharpton said. “And in Israel, are we focused on whether or not we can be violent, or whether we can make the most inflammatory statements? How do we coach this? It’s about them, and I think they’ve lost the message, and I think it’s because it’s been instilled by people who aren’t them.”
Sharpton is not the first to draw comparisons between student protesters and those who stormed the Capitol on January 6th.
Former President Trump this week questioned whether the Columbia University students who occupied the building would face a similar outcome to those charged in the Capitol riot.
“This entire country is rising up in arms, invading our universities, and absolutely crushing Columbia University,” President Trump told reporters on Tuesday.
“I mean, they took over. I know that building very well. They took over the building, that’s a big deal,” the former president continued. “And I wonder if what happens to them will be similar to what happened to J6, because they cause a lot of destruction, a lot of damage, a lot of people are seriously injured. be.”
Hundreds of people have faced criminal charges in connection with their roles in the Capitol riot. Trump himself is facing federal charges in Washington, D.C., for allegedly trying to interfere in the election and stay in power.
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