I Just Got Up: Aliya Rahman’s Shocking Arrest at the State of the Union
WASHINGTON – When President Donald Trump wished “happy birthday” to a World War II veteran who had just turned 100, Aliya Rahman stood to applaud.
When Trump made racist comments about the Somali community in Minneapolis, saying they come from cultures “where bribery, corruption and lawlessness are the norm,” Rahman stood up again, without applauding and saying nothing.
This is pretty standard fare for attending a State of the Union address, which Rahman made Tuesday night, as a guest of Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.). Knowing they are on national television, members of Congress spend all night calculating when to stand up and applaud in support of something the president says, or when to decidedly not stand up, in disagreement. Your guests and other people sitting on the balcony above sometimes also stand up at times.
Except on Tuesday, Rahman was arrested for it.
It’s as crazy as it sounds. Rahman, a Bangladeshi-American software engineer who lives in Minneapolis, says she and others sitting nearby had already gotten up several times before police officers approached them and told them they “couldn’t get up.” She didn’t think they were serious, but moments later, they grabbed her by the shoulders and dragged her outside.
“I just got up,” Rahman said in an interview. “I stayed silent, no signs. I wasn’t blocking anyone’s view of the hallway. And then they arrested me.”
ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS via Getty Images
His shoulders were already injured. Last month, Rahman, who is autistic and physically disabled, was driving to a doctor’s appointment in Minneapolis when federal Immigration Customs and Enforcement agents surrounded her car, broke her window, dragged her out, and locked her in a federal detention center where she says she experienced severe medical neglect and violence at the hands of ICE agents, requiring hospitalization for assault.
A witness captured their incident. in the movieand footage of Rahman’s violent encounter with ICE went viral. Fast forward to a few weeks ago, and she was testifying before congress about the abuse she suffered that day that she believes almost killed her.
Some women sitting near Rahman at the State of the Union recognized her from her testimony and tried to intervene as she was dragged away. One was a lawyer who asked if Rahman needed it. Another was Dr. Anita Patel, a guest of Rep. Joaquín Castro (D-Texas) and who was aware of Rahman’s injuries.
“She stood up quietly, didn’t make any noise and was [descended] They attacked her as if she were a criminal while wearing an n95 mask and using a baton,” Patel wrote. in an Instagram post on Thursday.
“I jumped over the railing and said, ‘You have to let her go. She has bilateral shoulder injuries. She has a traumatic brain injury and she’s neurodivergent,'” Patel said in the video he posted. “Then they continued pulling her. Then I stood in front of them. They told me: either I move aside or they will drag me with her.”
Patel added: “Don’t let them turn your story into something it’s not.”
Rahman says that after she was ejected from the event, Capitol Police officers handcuffed her, took her baton, and held her in a stairwell. They did not say if she was under arrest, and as they pulled her by the shoulders, she repeatedly asked for her cane. An officer responded, “You’re walking,” meaning he didn’t need his baton.
“Intimidate, intimidate, don’t listen,” Rahman said. “Who takes the cane from a disabled person? I’m trying to stop them. I’m not resisting, I’m disabled.”
Officers were so aggressive toward her that she had to be taken to George Washington University Hospital for treatment after she was dragged away from the event. She was later booked into US Capitol Police headquarters.
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Rahman said she suspects she was singled out because she was a guest of Omar, a frequent critic of Trump and someone who is routinely the target of racist attacks by this administration.
In a statement, the US Capitol Police said Rahman was arrested for “demonstrating.”
“At approximately 10:07 p.m., a person in the House Gallery began demonstrating during the State of the Union address,” the statement read. “The guest was told to sit down, but refused to obey our lawful commands. It is illegal to disrupt Congress and demonstrate in Congressional buildings, so Aliya M. Rahman, 43, of Minneapolis, MN, was arrested for DC Code §10-503.16 – Unlawful Conduct, Disruption of Congress.”
A Capitol Police spokesperson further said that standing is considered a form of protest.
“Yes, standing (not just monetarily standing with the crowd) is a form of demonstration,” the spokesperson said in an emailed message. “The officers had no idea what her background was or who the guest was. They told her to sit down several times. She refused. It’s simple.”
News themezone requested a copy of the Capitol Police report on Rahman’s arrest but was told it is not available to the public.
Rahman’s attorney, Jessica Gingold of the MacArthur Justice Center, said it is It is “unprecedented” for someone to be ejected from a State of the Union address for remaining silent, let alone be criminally charged for it. The charge can carry up to six months in prison. They hope the case will be dismissed before Rahman’s hearing takes place.
“Our reading of the statute assumes it’s the part about uttering ‘loud, threatening or abusive language’ or engaging in ‘disorderly or disruptive conduct,'” Gingold said of the dc code. “She didn’t do any of that. She stood up.”
He noted that “many other people” have spoken openly in the past State of the Union and, for some reason, “Aliya is a person in a unique situation, the only one accused of this type of crime.”
“We feel strongly that this should be scrapped,” Gingold said.
Omar also condemned the police officers’ treatment of Rahman.
“The harsh response to a peaceful guest sends a chilling message about the state of our democracy,” the Minnesota congresswoman said on social media. “I ask for a full explanation of why this arrest occurred.”