Capitol rioters complain jail is force teaching them critical race theory
A new court filing accuses the DC Department of Corrections of forcing ‘critical race theory’ onto jail-issued tablets
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Two men who’ve been charged with a range of crimes stemming from the 6 January insurrection are accusing the District of Columbia Department of Corrections of a bizarre range of alleged abuses, including “force feeding” them “critical race theory,” “reeducation propaganda,” and “anti-white messaging” on their jail-issued tablets.
The accusations appeared in a court filing attached to a motion for bail by Ryan Nichols, a Longview, Texas man who prosecutors have charged with five separate crimes stemming from his alleged participation in the attack on the Capitol, including assault on a federal officer.
The filing takes the form of a lengthy statement from Mr Nichols and another accused Capitol attack defendant, Robert Morss.
Both men, who are being held at the District of Columbia jail pending trial, accuse the corrections department of 77 separate “constitutional, human, and civil rights violations,” and describe themselves as “Political Prisoners on American soil who have been unjustly and unfairly incarcerated” and claim that they are “relentlessly burdened by selective prosecution … because of our political affiliation”.
“We are force fed CRT propaganda on tablets,” they wrote, adding that they are also “force fed reeducation propaganda” on the same tablets, which they claim show them “anti-White messaging”.
Messrs Nichols and Morss went on to suggest that rather than continue to hold them in the DC jail, the Justice Department should instead transfer them to the detention facility at the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba naval base where illegal enemy combatants have been detained since the early 2000s.
“Let us spend our precious and limited days in Guantanamo Bay Cuba, where the enemies of the United States of America are treated better than us group of January Sixers, who have merely been accused of crimes,” they wrote.
The Independent has reached out to Mr Nichols’s attorney and the DC Department of Corrections for comment.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments