Park rangers and military police deployed tear gas and physical force to disperse peaceful protestors from Lafayette Park, which surrounds the White House, so Trump could walk to “pay respects” to the church — and a St. John’s rector on the scene revealed in a Facebook post that she was left “coughing” from the tear gas.
“We were literally DRIVEN OFF of the St. John’s, Lafayette Square patio with tear gas and concussion grenades and police in full riot gear,” Gerbasi said. “We were pushed back 20 feet.” She said she was OK but “shaken” by the ordeal.
Mariann Budde, the Episcopal Bishop of Washington, D.C., told the Washington Post on Monday she was “not given even a courtesy call, that they would be clearing [the area] with tear gas so they could use one of our churches as a prop.”
"The Bible teaches us to love God and our neighbor; that all people are beloved children of God; that we are to do justice and love kindness. The President used our sacred text as a symbol of division."
— Budde’s tweet
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