Ward 3 Councilwoman Mary Cheh and seven other women were arrested Wednesday evening while protesting for D.C. rights on Capitol Hill. Cheh was part of a D.C. Vote-organized rally focused specifically on a bill passed by the House Wednesday that would make permanent a federally-imposed ban on using D.C. taxpayer dollars to fund abortions. Cheh is the latest of several D.C. elected officials to get arrested protesting federal oversight of the District. Mayor Vincent Gray led the charge last month during a similar Capitol Hill protest.
“I am proud to join the people today and my colleagues on the council who were arrested last month in standing up for home rule and against congressional meddling in the District budget,” Cheh said. “We must do everything we can at this critical juncture to oppose [the bill].”