Charleston protesters will gather on Thursday evening in Marion Square to demonstrate against Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ forced resignation by President Donald Trump.

Participants will gather at the park at the corner of King and Calhoun streets on Thurs. Nov. 8 at 5 p.m.

On Wednesday, The New York Times reported that Sessions delivered his resignation letter at the request of the president, who waited until after Tuesday’s contentious midterm election, which caused Republicans to lose control of the U.S. House, to shake up his Department of Justice.

Sessions, an early supporter of Trump, recused himself from an investigation into Russian election interference in March 2017 after it was revealed that he failed to report interactions with Russian Ambassador Sergey I. Kislyak during the 2016 campaign. Since then, his relationship with Trump has soured and deteriorated to the point of public insults.
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Trump appointed Session’s chief of staff, Matthew Whitaker, as acting Attorney General. Whitaker has previously questioned the legitimacy of the department’s Russia inquiry headed up by special counsel Robert Mueller.

Heightening concerns that Trump may work to hinder the investigation that has loomed over most of his presidency so far, Democrats have decried Sessions’ dismissal and called for Whitaker to recuse himself.
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“Donald Trump just crossed a red line, violating the independence of the investigation pursuing criminal charges in the Trump-Russia scandal and cover-up,” according to a description of Thursday’s Charleston rally. “Trump putting himself above the law is a threat to our democracy, and we’ve got to get Congress to stop him.”

The rally is part of a nationwide effort coordinated via MoveOn.org and organized locally by attorney and transportation activist William J. Hamilton. Indivisible Charleston, a local progressive group, has also notified its followers.

Sessions’ Justice Department ordered a “zero tolerance” immigration policy this spring that led to the family separation crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border. He also reversed a three-year old policy protecting transgender workers from discrimination in private and public employment.

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