ST PAUL, Minn. — "What we saw yesterday was double standards for citizens of this country," said Rosemary Nevils Williams, a Twin Cities area civil rights activist.
Images seen around the world of Wednesday's violence at the Capitol are painting a picture of what some local activists say is a double standard when it comes to policing protests.
"People have had rubber bullets hit them in in face, and body parts where they've had to have surgery," said Nekima Levy Armstrong, a civil rights attorney and member of the Racial Justice Network.
"Yesterday was a very clear mirror for those who wanted to act or say that they didn't understand or they didn't see the differences. Well, the universe provided that for them," said Raeisha Williams, a Twin Cities area civil rights activist.
Back in June, at the height of the Black Lives Matter Protests, several D.C. national guardsmen held their ground on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial as thousands of BLM protesters marched through the city, met with a heavy militarized police response - a stark contrast to what we saw Wednesday.
Even President-elect Biden pointed it out in a speech Thursday.
"Had it been a group of Black Lives Matter protesting yesterday ... they would've been treated very very differently than the mob of thugs that stormed the Capitol," said Biden.
Numbers back up the claims. Just two months ago, more than 600 Black Lives Matters protesters were arrested after marching onto I-94 in Minneapolis from one exit to the next, compared to the 83 people D.C. Police say were arrested during Wednesday's riot.
Over the summer, amid several BLM protests, President Trump threatened prison time in a tweet on July 27, 2020 stating: “Anarchists, Agitators or Protestors who vandalize or damage our Federal Courthouse in Portland, or any Federal Buildings in any of our Cities or States, will be prosecuted under our recently re-enacted Statues and Monuments Act. MINIMUM TEN YEARS IN PRISON. Don’t do it!”
"We are constantly criminalized as a result of standing up for freedom, justice and equality," said Armstrong.
With Minneapolis sparking the flame which ignited BLM protests around the world last summer, local civil rights leaders are now demanding change, holding those accountable for what they call mistreatment, while demanding equality for all.
"Its not just the brutality in one situation, this is a day to day thing that black people deal with everyday," said Satara Strong, a leader with Black Lives Matter Twin Cities.