For my entire educational upbringing, there was emphasis on the holocaust and the dehumanizing conditions millions of Jews were subjugated to by Nazi Germany. We read literature like Anne Frank and Night, had holocaust survivors as guest speakers, and always heard the adage about “learning from history so that it may never happen again.” Little, if any, focus was placed on the Imperial Japan’s actions against the Chinese people, the Soviet Gulags, East German STASI etc. It is easy to vilify that which is blatantly abhorrent and entirely unrelated to oneself. After all, when political opposition are denigrated as Nazi’s, there is no need to teach the atrocities from regimes ideologically aligned with those in the university system. Instead of discussions degrading into Nazi or Hitler comparisons, Godwin’s Law is our starting line.
January 6, a day which will live on in infamy, the day in which Donald Trump rallied his supporters to storm the capital and overthrow the Congress—an insurrection! Or so we were told. In reality, a bunch of unarmed demonstrators were permitted entry into the Capitol. Maybe a few rooms were ransacked but hardly the assault on democracy we were initially told. Never mind the possible FBI involvement. Nothing sinister going on there.
Then the hunt began. 719 arrests with 129 having plead guilty to federal charges. Many remain incarcerated to this day. Who knew misdemeanor trespassing was the most egregious offense one could commit in these United States? 37 of those are locked away in DC jail without bail under cruel pretrial conditions.
On November 4, 2021, Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA-14) and Louie Gohmert (TX-01) visited the DC gulag and eventually held a press conference on December 7, 2021. For the full report provided by Rep Greene, which includes a co-authored letter also signed by Representatives Paul Gosar, (AZ-4) and Matt Gaetz (FL-1), (link here) Pages will be cited below.
Detailed in their report are accounts of maltreatment within the jail. Whereas other prisoners are allowed basic amenities like education, TV, and other recreational activities (11), the January 6 detainees were locked away in an older section and denied such stimulation. Early on, it is noted that the area reeked and was improperly maintained, even being recently scrubbed (17). For the first several months of their incarceration, prisoners were held in solitary confinement for 23 hours within their cell and only 1 hour out. This was so generously raised to 22 and 2 hours respectively. Presently, they only are permitted 5 hours out and allowed outdoors only twice a week (18). Abuse from the guards was detailed as commonplace. Malnourishment was reported. Contact with families and attorneys—limited if any. If the detainees wanted a haircut—got to be vaccinated! Otherwise, they use Nair, a chemical hair removal which can cause chemical burning and skin irritation. Public religious service outside the ward—got to be vaccinated! In fact, they hold their own church service. Communion—got to take their sacrament first! (18)
On September 18th, the goalers rounded the detainees and secluded them in a room with no bathroom facilities for roughly 14 hours (19) in which they were physically abused by the guards for attempting to sing “The Star-Spangled Banner”. For those who might not recall, that was the day of the “Justice for J6” rally which was largely maligned for the memes of supposedly (or obviously) undercover FBI agents.
Probably the most surprising aspect is their notable patriotism behind bars. They sing their national anthem and “God Bless America” and chanted “U-S-A!” and “LETS-GO-BRANDON!” despite their condition.
In America, our judicial system is predicated on the presumption of innocence, yet they are dehumanized and maltreated by a government for petty crimes. They have been forsaken by their country and denied their basic constitutional rights. Many are left to legally represent themselves, and the jailers hinder their ability to do so. Access to the legal resources is limited and motions are written on notebook paper (18-19). At least the jail hands out literature promoting Critical Race Theory and other Nation of Islam propaganda as they go through their reeducation process.
The Least of These
In Matthew 25, Jesus says:
34 “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; 36 naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? 38 And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? 39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’
Throughout the New Testament, the examples of prison visits are demonstrated as believers supporting other believers. This is not to say nonbelievers should not be ministered to, but the scriptural application we see emphasizes ministering to believers when they are jailed. We see this in Paul, being visited in a Roman prison cell, from which he wrote his epistles. We see this with Peter and John, freed by the angles in Acts 5. Peter would later write 2 Peter from a prison cell. They they were visited, ministered to and we derive much of the New Testament because Christians went into the jail cells to retrieve and deliver these letters.
In modern context, that is what Reps Greene and Gohmert ministered to the least of America’s citizens—or so the media would have you believed. They met with them, they sang, they encouraged, and even prayed for them amidst their suffering.
Aside from the four congressional representatives mentioned, who else is taking action against this injustice system? Chip Roy (TX-21) and Thomas Massie (KY-04) have taken up inquiry with the DOJ. What about Donald Trump? Single handily, he is wealthy enough to afford legal representation for these 37 men, who were in DC that day in support of him. Many of those arrested for January 6 have been left in the hands of public defenders who detest them or grifters like Lin Wood and John Pierce—both of whom were prior attorneys for Kyle Rittenhouse. Rittenhouse has since accused them of leaving him in jail for 87 days so they could raise money off his situation.
Conclusion
One does not need to support election fraud claims or believe that their conduct was justified that day to realize that their basic constitutional rights are being violated. Confronting injustice requires courage. The weaponization of January 6 has resulted in disgraceful treatment of our fellow Americans, some of which are brothers in Christ! Unsurprisingly, Big Eva is largely silent on their conditions and Team GOP distances themselves from anything January 6th. Naturally, the media and democrats will continue to denigrate and dehumanize these political prisoners while the institutions crack down on political dissent either through undercover operations or through aggressive policing. These 37 are not alone, and if Merrick Garland has his way, parents protesting school boards are next in line.
One Response
It is quite telling who isn’t lifting a finger for them. QUITE TELLING. It’s really disappointing that a majority of the politicians ‘on our side’ really aren’t. Also, I remember that they didn’t want to bail Kyle out because he was safer in jail than out of it. But its so hard to nail down the truth today, it seems that everyone constantly lies with abandon.