One Republican congressman did not share in the spirit of a sit-in protest by House Democrats Wednesday on gun control legislation, tweeting that the demonstration was “a disgrace to Woolworth’s.”
Rep. Mark Walker (R-NC) took to Twitter while the Democrats sat and made speeches on the House floor, referencing the 1960 sit-in at the Woolworth’s lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina, where four black students refused to leave after being denied service:
Calling this a sit-in is a disgrace to Woolworth’s. They sat-in for rights. Dems are “sitting-in” to strip them away https://t.co/uBT0cPqsjT
— Rep. Mark Walker (@RepMarkWalker) June 22, 2016
“Calling this a sit-in is a disgrace to Woolworth’s,” Walter wrote. “They sat-in for rights. Dems are ‘sitting-in’ to strip them away.”
One of the measures that the Democrats are protesting to have passed would prevent those on the “no-fly list” from purchasing guns, a sore subject with many conservatives who feel it could allow the government to take away the Second Amendment rights of those placed on the list in error.
Many were quick to point out that Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), who was beaten by police during the civil rights march in Selma, Alabama, was responsible for starting the sit-in on the House floor, where he was surrounded by Democratic colleagues.
