Co-founder of the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream company and prominent liberal activist Ben Cohen was detained on Thursday in Washington.
According to reports, Cohen and CODEPINK’s co-founder sat outside the Department of Justice to oppose the United States persecution of Julian Assange, the Wikileaks founder.
Cohen and Jodie Evans spent over an hour in the rain, blocking the entrance by sitting on the ground.
Cohen burned a placard that read “Freedom of the Press” to show his disapproval, saying that he believes Assange’s legal issue threatens press freedom in the United States.
Cohen argued that a free press is essential to a democratic society because it is the sole check on government. Assange remains in jail, so the press cannot operate freely.
Evans and Cohen were captured on camera being detained for blocking the entrance to the Department of Justice building.
After being held for three hours, the demonstrators were freed, and Cohen immediately took to Twitter to demand that Assange’s accusations be dropped.
While his extradition to the United States is being processed, Assange is in a maximum-security jail in London. The Espionage Act is one of the 18 allegations against him.
The allegations stem from Wikileaks’ 2010 and 2011 disclosures of sensitive information regarding the Iraq War and Guantanamo Bay. Assange might spend the rest of his life in jail if found guilty.
Cohen’s ice cream company is well-known for the political stunts and demonstrations it has organized in support of liberal causes.
Ben & Jerry tweeted on Independence Day that the United States is built on stolen Indigenous territory and called for its restoration.
Its parent firm, Unilever, saw a dip in stock price that hasn’t recovered three days later.
