John Lewis arrested for Darfur protest

WASHINGTON —- U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) and four other members of Congress were arrested for civil disobedience Monday as they protested the Sudanese government’s policies toward the violence-torn Darfur region.

Lewis and others were arrested after crossing a police line and refusing to leave the area in front of the Sudanese Embassy in Washington. The Atlanta Democrat was released a few hours later after paying a $100 fine.

“It is important to send a message not only to the people in this country and our own government, but to the people of the world that the genocide in Darfur must end,” Lewis said outside a police precinct after his arrest. “What is going on there are crimes against humanity.”

Others arrested in the demonstration organized by the Save Darfur Coalition were Reps. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), Donna Edwards (D-Md.), Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) and Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.).

In a statement before his arrest, Lewis blamed the government of Sudan for the deaths of almost 500,000 people, and he called on the Obama administration, the United Nations and Congress to do more to stop violence there.

“We cannot stand by, watch and wait,” Lewis said.