'Wholly inappropriate': Kyrsten Sinema responds to Arizona State University bathroom confrontation
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) has shared her response to Sunday's incident at Arizona State University, when she was confronted by youth organizers outside her classroom and in a bathroom, reports The Daily Beast. Sinema has taught at the university since 2003.
"Yesterday's behavior was not legitimate protest," wrote Sinema in a Monday statement. "It is unacceptable for activist organizations to instruct their members to jeopardize themselves by engaging in unlawful activities such as gaining entry to closed university buildings, disrupting learning environments, and filming students in a restroom."
Organizers for social justice group Living United for Change in Arizona first approached Sinema outside what is reportedly her ASU classroom, then followed her into the bathroom, writes The Daily Beast. Activists wanted to speak with the senator regarding President Biden's Build Back Better agenda, for which Sinema has become a major sticking point.
Article continues belowThe Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"In Arizona, we love the First Amendment," Sinema wrote in her statement, adding that she and her team have met with LUCHA "several times" since being elected to the Senate. But she called what happened Sunday "wholly inappropriate."
"It is the duty of elected leaders to avoid fostering an environment in which honestly-held policy disagreements serve as the basis for vitriol," wrote Sinema.
Read her full statement below:
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
