There have been extraordinary scenes in the US Capitol building in Washington. Democrat representatives and civil rights activists sung the religious civil rights anthem We Shall Overcome while staging a sit-in demanding new gun control laws in the wake of the Orlando massacre.
The sit-in began in the morning session of Congress and was led by civil rights veteran John Lewis.
Mr Lewis and Democrat lawmakers occupied the floor space in front of the main dais and frustrated efforts by Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan to proceed with other business.
The protesting lawmakers erupted in a chant of “no bill, no break” as Republicans tried to close down the session.
There were heated exchanges between Democrat and Republican lawmakers as the protest continued.
Despite efforts by the Republicans to cut off broadcasts from the House, images of the sit-in were widely distributed on social media.
The sit-in drew praise from the twitter accounts of US President Barack Obama and Democrat presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton.
Eventually Mr Ryan called the House into recess with the protesters still demanding that gun control be put on the agenda.
Image by Adam J. Smith via Twitter
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