Ben & Jerry’s ice cream company co-founder Ben Cohen was arrested Thursday while protesting the prosecution of Julian Assange in front of the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C.
The company Cohen founded is currently embroiled in controversy over a Fourth of July tweet that argued U.S. land should be returned to indigenous tribes that once occupied it, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, was indicted four years ago on 18 counts for allegedly obtaining and publishing classified information. He has been held in a London prison since 2019 while fighting extradition to the U.S. to face those charges.
“It’s outrageous. Julian Assange is nonviolent. He is presumed innocent. And yet somehow or other, he has been imprisoned in solitary confinement for four years. That is torture,” Cohen said at the demonstration, per a press release from CodePink.
CodePink is a self-described “feminist grassroots organization working to end U.S. warfare and imperialism, support peace and human rights initiatives, and redirect resources into healthcare, education, green jobs and other life-affirming programs.”
“[Assange] revealed the truth, and for that he is suffering, and that’s [why] we need to do whatever we can to help him, and to help preserve democracy, which is based on freedom of the press.
“It seems to me that, right now, unless things change, and unless we change them, freedom of the press is going up in smoke,” Cohen added while he stood on the steps and set fire to a sign that read “freedom of the press.”
The 72-year-old Cohen was arrested along with CodePink co-founder Jodie Evans, according to the release.
The Dallas Express spoke with Evans a day after she was arrested. She echoed Cohen’s assertion that Assange has endured torture by being held in solitary confinement for four years.
Evans asserted, “You cannot have a democracy without freedom of the press,” describing Assange as “a publisher in jail.”
She claimed that despite never entering the DOJ building, she and Cohen were charged with unlawful entry after the protest, noting that this was “the same charge as Jan. 6 people.”
Assange’s cause has notably been taken up by some on the right as well as the left.
In addition to Cohen and CodePink, former Arizona Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake tweeted on July 3, Assange’s birthday, “Free Julian Assange,” and included a quote from Assange that said: “People have a right to know and a right to question and challenge power, that’s true democracy.”
The news aggregator Revolver often features links to articles with updates about Assange, with some openly advocating for Assange’s cause. Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has stated that if he is elected president, he would free Assange.
Asked why she thought she was finding common cause with the political right, Evans said, “People on the left and the right can both see [the injustice].”
Evans added Assange is being persecuted for “exposing the cost of war,” which she said “makes good people enemies.” She concluded, “We’re not telling the truth about Ukraine. We’re driving hate on China.”
