Multiple congressional lawmakers will hold up yellow pencils when President Obama references the recent terrorist attack on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo during his State of the Union speech, according to Time magazine.
Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI) will participate in the display of solidarity, and her spokesman said that other members will join her. According to the Daily Beast, at least 10 lawmakers will hold up pencils, which have been used as a symbol of freedom of speech following the Paris attack.
“Rather than divide and intimidate us, these brazen and barbaric attacks have united the international community and prompted a global response in defense of the freedom of expression,” Moore’s press secretary, Eric Harris, told Time.