- Gun control activists were seen storming Tennessee’s State Capitol Thursday amid rising fears of a left-wing uprising at a rumored protest in Washington, DC
By ALEX HAMMER FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
PUBLISHED: 14:34 EDT, 30 March 2023 | UPDATED: 17:40 EDT, 30 MARCH 2023
Gun control activists were seen storming Tennessee‘s State Capitol Thursday amid rising fears of a left-wing uprising at a rumored protest in Washington, DC.
Footage of the insurrection shows progressive protesters battling with cops as they attempted to gain access to the legislature in Nashville. Hundreds of people were seen inside the lobby and yelling from the gallery at concerned lawmakers.
The protest against guns comes after transgender shooter Audrey Hale on Monday gunned down six people, including three nine-year-old kids, at a Christian school in Nashville.
In a separate demonstration, trans activists yesterday invaded Kentucky’s State Capitol in Frankfort to protest a Republican-backed bill to ban transgender procedures for children. Among the mob was a self-described ‘genderqueer clown nun’, who immediately drew comparisons to the QAnon Shaman of the January 6 riot.
The left-wing demonstrations come amid fears of a Trans Day of Vengeance which has been threatened for Washington DC on Saturday. Twitter bosses this week rushed to remove thousands of posts advertising the protest.
Footage of the ongoing insurrection, posted to social media just before 2pm, shows progressive protesters attempting to enter the Nashville legislation building, and being batted away by several members of the city’s sheriff’s department
Hours earlier, outside Kentucky’s State Capitol in Frankfort, an unrelated procession featuring a clergy-clothes-clad activist in clown makeup and satanic garb assembled to protest their vetoing of a bill banning medical treatments for trans kids.
Gun control activists storm Tennessee State Capito
While most condemned the attack – which left three nine-year-olds and as many school staffers dead – several unrelated fringe, extremist groups have surfaced claiming the shooting was a consequence of ongoing oppression of trans people in Southern, more conservative states.One such group, the Trans Radical Activist Network (TRAN), seemingly took notice of this chaos, and used the opportunity to rebrand a planned three-day procession previously called the Trans Day of Visibility as ‘a day of vengeance.’
Posters advertising the procession have been published and shared rapidly on platform such as Twitter, which confirmed Wednesday it had already removed more than 5,000 posts promoting the event.
According to several since-scrubbed advertisements, the event is still to be held in Washington, DC, as scheduled – from Friday until Sunday – though revelers wrote they would ‘march’ on the country’s most important court building at 11am Saturday.
The demonstration currently occurring in Nashville served as a preview of what could be in store for public officials Washington once the weekend rolls around – with footage taken from the scene showing hundreds descending on Tennessee’s foremost legislation building in a fight for tighter gun laws.
Prior to forcing themselves into the building, hundreds were seen gathering outside airing chants of ‘Save our children!’ – phrase that reportedly echoed through the hallways between the state Senate and House chambers this afternoon.
Some remained peaceful as they filed into the Senate building – while others yelled at officials trying to make their way into areas protected by police.
Prior to forcing themselves into the building, hundreds were seen gathering to chants of ‘Save our children!’ – phrase that reportedly echoed thought the state Senate and House chambers days after the city was rocked by a school shooting
Some silently filled the Senate chamber – while others yelled at officials trying to make their way through the building. Children held signs referencing Monday’s attack, which was carried out by a transgender person
Two teenage protesters are seen shouting ‘do something’ at Republican House Member Jeremy Faison, pushing for congress to pass more restrictive gun laws
Protestors are seen gating outside the Tennessee State Capitol Building earlier in the day
Hundreds of school children, teens and parents gathered for the procession to protest gun laws currently in place three days after a shooter opened fire at The Covenant School
Protesters eventually made their way into the state legislature building, with some engaging in officers tasked with keeping the peace
A group of more than one hundred protesters are seen lining the hallways of the building Thursday – two days before a rumored ‘march’ on the US Supreme Court allegedly
A much larger group of more than 1,000 was and is still stationed outside, beseeching the Republican-dominated Legislature to amend current gun laws
Two young girls hold signs reverencing Monday’s shooting, which left three nine-year-old students dead, as well as three school staffers
The procession came less than a day after nineteen were arrested and charged with third-degree criminal trespassing following the Kentucky protests, which also saw demonstrators enter the state building
A teenager is seen raising his sign in support of harsher gun laws during the rally, which was held with the objective of ‘ending gun violence’
The demonstration in Nashville served as a preview of what could be in store for public officials Washington once the weekend rolls around – with footage taken from the scene showing hundreds descending on Tennessee’s foremost legislation building
The procession appeared outside the Capitol Wednesday morning, as state staffers made their way to work to begin taking up bills for the first time since the shooting
Revelers were seen waiting on the steps of the Capitol Building as state staffers began to make their way inside the building
Protesters in Nashville are seen asking for action from lawmakers on gun control after Monday’s shooting
Several young children were spotted in the hallways of the Senate building, where cops were stationed to prevent people from gaining access to other areas
Most remained peaceful, while others battled with officers tasked with keeping a clamp on the unrest
A group is seen toting signs calling for increased gun control – a demand that has been voiced in several other states since the shooting
A presumably teenage protester holds a sign outside the Tennessee Capitol during the demonstration, which comes amid a rash of mass shootings over the past decade
An anti-gun activist is heard joining in once of several chants heard during the Thursday rally
Protesters were seen screaming at Republican lawmakers inside the State Capitol building Thursday
Officers attempted to keep the rally confined to certain areas, but two Democratic lawmakers caused a temporary shutdown when they joined in on the revelry. State Senator Charlene Oliver is seen here leading chants of ‘power to the people’, through a megaphone
Officers attempted to keep the rally confined to certain areas, but two Democratic lawmakers caused a temporary shutdown when they joined in on the revelry.
‘Power to the people,’ State Senator Charlene Oliver was heard screaming through a megaphone – a chant that hundreds of others who had gathered in the House emphatically repeated.
Most remained peaceful, while others were seen battling with officers tasked with keeping a clamp on the unrest.
Several young children were spotted inside the Capitol building during the general disarray in the Senate chamber’s gallery – despite many adults being removed amid a series of heated displays.
It is not clear if any of the protesters were arrested, though if the display in Kentucky is any indicator, that could very well be the case.
That pro-trans procession, seen on Wednesday, saw 19 in total arrested, after dozens also made their way into the state’s Capitol ahead of a planned vote on whether to override a veto from the state’s Democratic Governor against a controversial new bill that would ban medical treatments for transgender youth.
Also Republican-dominated, the Republican-led Senate overwhelmingly voted to override Governor Andy Beshear’s veto – likely fueling unrest seen Thursday regarding conservative-run states and their often more lax gun laws.
In the case of Kentucky, several protesters were also seen shouting at Republican reps, as well as speaker of the house David Osborne, before being physically removed by state police.
The 19 arrested – angered by the prospective passing of a law that would limit medical treatments for transgender people under 18 – were charged with third-degree criminal trespassing.
They were only charged and arrested after officers gave each ‘the option to leave without any enforcement action or be placed under arrest,’ a State Police spokesperson said.
It is not clear if any of the protesters were arrested, though if the display in Kentucky seen yesterday is any indicator, that could very well be the case. Demonstrators are seen outside the Kentucky State Capitol in Frankfort Wednesday
The pro-trans procession saw 19 in total arrested, after dozens also made their way into the state’s Capitol ahead of a planned vote on whether to override a veto from the state’s Dem. Governor that would stop a bill barring trans kids from receiving hormone blockers
The veto sought to stop a new bill that would ban medical treatments for transgender youth. The veto was overrided by the Republican-led senate that day
Also Republican-dominated, the Republican-led Senate overwhelmingly voted to override the governor’s veto – likely fueling unrest seen Thursday regarding conservative-run states and their often more lax gun laws
The 19 arrested – angered by the prospective passing of a law that would limit medical treatments for transgender people under 18 – were charged with third-degree criminal trespassing
They were only charged and arrested after officers gave each ‘the option to leave without any enforcement action or be placed under arrest,’ a State Police spokesperson said
Amid this unrest, the aforementioned Trans Radical Activist Network is still set to descend on Washington, DC, Friday, marching on the Supreme Court Saturday supposedly at 11am sharp.
On their website they cite Gender Affirming care ban bills and the political climate as motives for the demonstration.
But commentators are up in arms over the decision to go ahead with the protest as police say they are investigating the role of Nashville shooter Hale‘s gender identity and a sense of ‘resentment‘ that may have inspired the attack on the shooter’s Christian former school.
And as at least 11 states have enacted laws restricting or banning gender-affirming care for minors – almost all being Southern states with relaxed gun control laws – further feelings of resentment have been felt from left-wing groups like the Trans Radical Activist Network, leading Twitter to take precautions by removing thousands of posts advertising the event over the past two days.
The upcoming protest was initially to be called the Trans Day of Visibility but rebranded as ‘vengeance means fighting back with vehemence,’ the group said.
‘It is our battle cry to declare to the world that we the transgender/non-binary communities will neither be silenced nor eradicated.’
Twitter has been removing the posts that could be deemed threatening or involve guns associated with the ‘TransDayofVengeance’ hashtag – but it is unclear exactly how many were others posing with weapons as they have since been deleted
Audrey Hale’s LinkedIn profile suggested they were now living as a man, and going by the name Aiden when she shot and killed six people at a Christian private school in Nashville. Her actions have fueled the unrest seen across the country involving gun control and trans rights
Websites such as Etsy are still being used to sell pro-gun and trans merchandise, with stickers that say ‘defend equality’ with assault rifles
Distancing themselves from Hale, the group published a statement on their website ahead of the event: ‘We Tsukuru [co-founder], Our Rights DC, and TRAN are horrified at the acts of violence committed at the Covenant school on March 27, 2023.
‘We grieve for Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, William Kinney, Cynthia Peak, Katherine Koonce, and Mike Hill, and with their loved ones.
‘We also reject any connection between that horrific event and outs.
‘Vengeance means fighting back with vehemence. We are fighting against false narratives, criminalization, and eradication of our existence.’
TRAN also said that due to ‘hate received’ they had disabled their contact form.