Climate activists dump pink powder on case containing US Constitution

Revered founding document, written on 4 sheets of parchment in 1787, was protected by its display and not damaged, National Archives says

By Reuters
February 16, 2024
This image shows the view of a hall of the National Archives Museum in Washington. — National Archives Museum website
This image shows the view of a hall of the National Archives Museum in Washington. — National Archives Museum website

WASHINGTON: Two climate-change activists were due to appear in court on Thursday after they were arrested for throwing pink powder on glass cases displaying the US Constitution at the National Archives Museum in Washington, the US attorney’s office said.

The revered founding document, written on four sheets of parchment in 1787, was protected by its display encasement and not damaged, the National Archives said.

Police arrested two men on Wednesday afternoon for what the National Archives called an act of vandalism. The museum’s rotunda was closed for cleaning on Thursday.

Videos posted on social media showed two men stood by the powder-dusted cases in the museum’s grand rotunda with their hands and clothes covered in the pink powder.