House Dems Take to Twitter to Let You See Their Gun-Control Sit-In

Protesters have shut down the House of Representatives. But these are not disenfranchised activists who've broken onto the floor. They are roughly 30 Democratic members of Congress, led by US Rep. John Lewis of Georgia, who are staging a sit-in to demand a vote to address gun violence. Chanting "No Bill, No Break," the lawmakers are deploying the tactics of peaceful resistance within the congressional chamber, a powerful rebuke of their Republican counterparts who have refused to consider any gun control measures in the wake of last week's mass shooting in Orlando.

When the dissenting representatives entered the well of the House chamber, Lewis gave a speech that ended with a call to action: "We have to occupy the floor of the House." At that point, GOP lawmakers sent the House into a recess, which shut off C-Span's live feed. That led protesting Democrats to take to Twitter, where they used #GoodTrouble and #NoBillNoBreak to demand that Republicans turn the cameras back on.

The cameras did come back briefly when the House returned to session at noon, and quickly broadcast a sermon from the House floor, followed by a recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. Protesting Democrats chanted the pledge while standing in the well but remained afterward to continue their calls for a gun-control bill. When they wouldn't leave, the GOP sent the House into recess again, shutting down the cameras once more.

US Rep. Scott Peters of California streamed the sit-in on Periscope. And Rep Beto O'Rourke of Texas live-streamed on Facebook Live.

C-Span tweeted to confirm that it had no control over when the cameras were on:

In fact, C-Span then began to broadcast tweets from the House floor. By midafternoon, C-Span was airing Periscope videos live from the sit-in.

As the head of public policy at Twitter put it:

The tactic of trying to silence the Democrats may backfire against the House GOP, unleashing the "Streisand Effect," the phenomenon by which the process of trying to hide something actually publicizes it further.

Whether Democrats succeed in getting a gun-control bill up for a vote, the takeaway is clear: they think enough Americans support reasonable gun control that they can run for reelection on the fact that they tried as hard as they could to pass it. Political theater doesn't require a camera anymore. With Twitter and a smartphone, the whole world's your stage.