Ali Alexander, the activist who organized the “Stop the Steal” rallies ahead of the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, has claimed he is being targeted by the House select committee investigating the insurrection because he is a “Black patriotic man.”
Alexander, who is one of a number of people who have been issued subpoenas by the House committee, also claimed in a statement on Telegram that the “FBI failures, agitators dressed in militant outfits, and police brutality” escalated into a “manufactured riot'” ad should be blamed for the violence which occurred in Washington D.C. that day.
Despite frequent attempts by conservative figures and conspiracy theorists to push the narrative, there is no evidence that the riot was planned and carried out by the FBI, or that left-wing activists, not Donald Trump supporters and extremists, were to blame.
“Last year, I organized 500 peaceful rallies across this nation asking our government to look into election irregularities, including one on January 5th and two on January 6th,” Alexander wrote. “It wasn’t just my lawful right, but also my duty as a concerned citizen.
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“There is no place for vandalism or violence in our Stop the Steal movement. I made that clear in countless speeches. I am being targeted because I am a Black patriotic man peacefully agitating an insecure government,” he added.
“This government will paint anyone who disagrees with it as a ‘domestic terrorist’ to play on the same xenophobia they used to militarize our local police stations and pass the Patriot Act. All this gaslighting will not give Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden the mandate deprived to them by the American voters.”
According to the subpoena issued on Thursday, in the weeks before the January 6 attack, Alexander made “repeated references” during Stop the Steal events about the possible use of violence to achieve the organization’s goals of stopping Congress certifying the 2020 Election results and confirming Joe Biden’s victory.
At a rally on January 5, held by the Eighty Percent Coalition at Freedom Plaza in Washington. D.C, Alexander led the crowd in a chant of “victory or death.”
On the day of the Capitol riot, Alexander a video was posted of himself overlooking the mob storming the building, saying: “I do not denounce this.”
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In a now-deleted video, Alexander also claimed that he conspired with Republican congressman Andy Biggs, Mo Brooks and Paul Gosar to put “maximum pressure on Congress while they were voting” on January 6.
Biggs and Brooks have denied the allegations, with Gosar frequently not responding when questioned by the media.
Gosar has been heavily criticized for his apparent links to far right-groups such as the Oath Keepers in the wake of the January 6 attack, with members his own family calling for him to be expelled from Congress for allegedly helping to plan the riot.
Alexander has until October 21 to respond to the panel’s demand for documents and is set to appear for a deposition on October 29.
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