Protest held outside of Griffith’s office in Christiansburg Friday.
CHRISTIANSBURG- “You broke your promise,” the sign read. “You swore to uphold the Constitution,” said another. More than 40 members of Appalachian Women of Action delivered a petition to Rep. Morgan Griffith Friday, through his office in Christiansburg. The petition, signed by more than 1,100 people, had a clear message: it’s time to resign.
“By fanning the flames of the big lie of a fraudulent election, leading to insurrection, you have not served the people of the Ninth District, nor have you served the Constitution,” the petition reads. “Instead, you have violated your oath of office, broken faith with your constituents, and undermined Democracy.”
The petition cities what happened after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol as an example. Griffith voted against certifying the 2020 presidential election. Then he voted against impeaching former President Donald Trump a second time.
“Following that invasion, you failed to defend your country against domestic enemies and voted to subvert and obstruct the will of the citizens of the United States of America,” the petition continues. “You are not fit for office.”
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Making Voices Heard
Appalachian Women of Action came together after the 2018 election, said Meredith Dean. The Floyd resident serves as the group’s founding director. AWA’s goal is to get people involved in the Democratic process. At times, that means supporting efforts to fight COVID-19. During others, it meant protesting in support of Black Lives Matter.
The group, which is non-partisan, grew frustrated with Ninth District Rep. Griffith, especially after the 2020 election. But when Griffith supported the Texas lawsuit challenging the election, that was it. Texas sued in December, challenging the election results in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. While Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton claimed to have drafted it, the country has since discovered it was done by former President Donald Trump’s legal team.
“When [Griffith] signed on to that Texas lawsuit, we started talking about having some kind of presence in front of his office to let him know we were not happy with what we saw as trying to overturn the election,” Dean said.
Then came the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and a presence just wasn’t enough anymore. They saw Griffith oppose certifying the election and decided he needed to go.
“We felt like now he’d taken it a whole step further,” Dean said. “He voted right after [the attack] to continue to obstruct.”
And so they put together a petition, calling for Griffith to resign.
What Next?
Dogwood has reached out to Griffith’s office for a interview or statement multiple times on this issue and previous votes. We never heard back. Dean said the group hopes to see a Congressional effort to sanction, if not expel, members like Griffith, holding him partially responsible for the events of Jan. 6.
“He fed the lies that fanned the flames,” she said. “We are pro Democracy, we are pro Constitution, we are pro America. We feel like our current congressman has been anti democracy and anti-American.”
You can communicate with Appalachian Women of Action through their Facebook page.
