Councilwoman Arrested for Protesting Kavanaugh Vote in D.C.
Peekskill Councilwoman Vanessa Agudelo was one of 77 people arrested Friday in Washington D.C. for protesting against the Judiciary Committee’s vote on Brett Kavanaugh for Supreme Court Justice.
In an exclusive interview with The Northern Westchester Examiner Monday, Agudelo said she had her wrists tied together with the other individuals taken into custody by police as they demonstrated down the hallway from the chambers in the Hart Senate Office Building where the Judiciary Committee was in session.
The first-year Democratic councilwoman, who made history in 2017 as the youngest person elected to the Common Council at age 25, was one of 62 women given a civil violation and had to pay a $50 fine before being released.
“The purpose was to show we were against the vote taking place because there was no FBI investigation done prior,” Agudelo explained. “We felt it was just being rammed through. It wasn’t fair to us or to the American people. It’s my responsibility, especially as an elected official, to make sure our voices are heard, especially as a woman.”
Agudelo said she decided the night before at 10 p.m. to take a midnight train to Grand Central Station to catch a bus to the nation’s capital in order to arrive in time for what was originally a 9 a.m. vote. The 11-10 party line vote to send Kavanaugh’s nomination to the full Senate later this week didn’t actually take place until about 1:30 p.m.
Protests were organized by the Women’s March, Concerned Women for America and the Center for Popular Democracy, a group Agudelo is a member of.
Agudelo, who noted she was one of the first individuals arrested, said police gave protestors three warnings before they were arrested. She said more women, many of whom were first-time activists, opted to pay the consequences for their actions.
“We have to be willing to put our lives on the line to make sure we have justice and democracy continues,” she said. “It’s no longer about the right or the left or being Republican or Democrat. It’s toxic masculinity. We can’t stand for these types of assault. We have to stand up against them.”
Agudelo said she found the testimony of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, who accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when she was 15, to be “credible.”
“I was very impressed by her poise and how she was able to keep it together,” she said. “I think Kavanaugh really showed his true colors. He showed he won’t be bipartisan.”
Earlier this year, Agudelo came under fire for her decision not to say the Pledge of Allegiance during Common Council meetings and other events. She said the Kavanaugh controversy is one example of why she has chosen to stand firm on her principles.
Last week was not the first time Agudelo said she was arrested for protesting. She said she was given a similar civil violation in 2016 in Philadelphia while demonstrating outside the Democratic National Convention.
Rick has more than 40 years’ experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, running the gamut from politics and crime to sports and human interest. He has been an editor at Examiner Media since 2012. Read more from Rick’s editor-author bio here. Read Rick’s work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/pezzullo_rick-writer/