Skip to content Skip to search

Republish This Story

* Please read before republishing *

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives Creative Commons license as long as you follow our republishing guidelines, which require that you credit The 19th and retain our pixel. See our full guidelines for more information.

To republish, simply copy the HTML at right, which includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to The 19th. Have questions? Please email [email protected].

— The Editors

Loading...

Modal Gallery

/
Sign up for our newsletter

Menu

  • Our Mission
  • Our Team
  • Latest Stories
  • Search
  • Upcoming Events
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Donate
  • Work With Us
  • Fellowships
    • From the Collection

      Changing Child Care

      Illustration of a woman feeding a baby a bottle
      • 1 in 4 parents report being fired for work interruptions due to child care breakdowns

        Chabeli Carrazana · February 2
      • Washington, D.C., offers financial relief to local child care workers

        Orion Rummler · September 20
      • As climate change worsens hurricane season in Louisiana, doulas are ensuring parents can safely feed their babies

        Jessica Kutz · May 5
    • From the Collection

      Next-Gen GOP

      Illustration of a woman riding an elephant
      • Mayra Flores’ victory set a record for women in Congress. It also reflects the growing visibility of Republican Latinas

        Candice Norwood · June 21
      • A banner year for Republican women

        Amanda Becker · November 11
      • Republican women could double representation in the U.S. House

        Amanda Becker · November 4
    • From the Collection

      On The Rise

      Illustration of three women marching
      • Can Cheri Beasley build a winning coalition in North Carolina?

        Candice Norwood · October 11
      • Los Angeles has never elected a woman mayor. Karen Bass hopes to change that.

        Nadra Nittle · September 8
      • Judge J. Michelle Childs is confirmed to D.C. appeals court

        Candice Norwood · July 20
    • From the Collection

      Pandemic Within a Pandemic

      Illustration of four people marching for Black Lives Matter with coronavirus as the backdrop
      • Some LGBTQ+ people worry that the COVID-19 vaccine will affect HIV medication. It won’t.

        Orion Rummler · November 23
      • Why are more men dying from COVID? It’s a complicated story of nature vs. nurture, researchers say

        Mariel Padilla · September 22
      • Few incarcerated women were released during COVID. The ones who remain have struggled.

        Candice Norwood · August 17
    • From the Collection

      Portraits of a Pandemic

      Illustration of a woman wearing a mask and holding up the coronavirus
      • For family caregivers, COVID is a mental health crisis in the making

        Shefali Luthra · October 8
      • A new database tracks COVID-19’s effects on sex and gender

        Shefali Luthra · September 15
      • Pregnant in a pandemic: The 'perfect storm for a crisis'

        Shefali Luthra · August 25
    • From the Collection

      The 19th Explains

      People walking from many articles to one article where they can get the context they need on an issue.
      • The 19th Explains: What we know about Brittney Griner’s case and what it took to get her home

        Candice Norwood, Katherine Gilyard · December 8
      • The 19th Explains: Why the Respect for Marriage Act doesn’t codify same-sex marriage rights

        Kate Sosin · December 8
      • The 19th Explains: Why baby formula is still hard to find months after the shortage

        Mariel Padilla · December 1
    • From the Collection

      The Electability Myth

      Illustration of three women speaking at podiums
      • Mayra Flores’ victory set a record for women in Congress. It also reflects the growing visibility of Republican Latinas

        Candice Norwood · June 21
      • Stepping in after tragedy: How political wives became widow lawmakers

        Mariel Padilla · May 24
      • Do term limits help women candidates? New York could be a new testing ground

        Barbara Rodriguez · January 11
    • From the Collection

      The Impact of Aging

      A number of older people walking down a path of information.
      • From ballroom dancing to bloodshed, the older AAPI community grapples with gun control

        Nadra Nittle, Mariel Padilla · January 27
      • 'I'm planning on working until the day I die': Older women voters are worried about the future

        Mariel Padilla · June 3
      • Climate change is forcing care workers to act as first responders

        Jessica Kutz · May 31
    • From the Collection

      Voting Rights

      A series of hands reaching for ballots.
      • Connecticut voters approved early voting. Here’s how their new secretary of state wants to make it happen.

        Barbara Rodriguez · February 13
      • Women lawmakers in Minnesota are in the vanguard of the democracy movement

        Barbara Rodriguez · February 3
      • Election workers believe in our system — and want everyone else to, too

        Barbara Rodriguez, Jennifer Gerson · November 8

    View all collections

  • Explore by Topic

    • 19th Polling
    • Abortion
    • Business & Economy
    • Caregiving
    • Coronavirus
    • Education
    • Election 2020
    • Election 2022
    • Election 2024
    • Environment & Climate
    • Health
    • Immigration
    • Inside The 19th
    • Justice
    • LGBTQ+
    • Military
    • Politics
    • Press Release
    • Race
    • Sports
    • Technology

    View All Topics

Home
  • Our Mission
  • Our Team
  • Latest Stories
  • Search
  • Upcoming Events
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Donate
  • Work With Us
  • Fellowships

We’re an independent, nonprofit newsroom reporting on gender, politics and policy. Read our story.

The 19th Represents Summit

Don’t miss our biggest event of 2023!

Register Today

Become a member

The 19th thanks our sponsors. Become one.

Jackie Speier
Rep. Jackie Speier asks questions during a hearing on November 20, 2019. (Photo by Samuel Corum - Pool/Getty Images)

Election 2020

‘I may be losing my life’: Rep. Jackie Speier of California recalls the Capitol riot

The 19th collected first-hand accounts of January 6 from nearly two dozen women in Congress.

Mariel Padilla

General Assignment Reporter

Mariel Padilla portrait

Published

2021-03-16 13:20
1:20
March 16, 2021
pm

Share

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email

About one month after pro-Trump rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol, The 19th reached out to all 143 women in the 117th Congress to ask about their experiences on January 6. Twenty-three shared their points of view from that day. We are also publishing each lawmaker’s full account of that day. Here is what Rep. Jackie Speier of California told The 19th. The transcript has been lightly edited: 

I walked over to the Capitol around 1 o’clock because I wanted to witness the counting of the ballots and be there for California. I was in the gallery around 1:15 p.m. They were debating Arizona at the time. I remember thinking that there was something fundamentally wrong that a senator from Texas could object to the vote in Arizona. 

As that debate was going on, I had seen some video of what was happening outside. People were tussling with the Capitol Police, but I assumed that the Capitol Police would be able to detain them.

The 19th thanks our sponsors. Become one.

Around 2 o’clock, the speaker was escorted out. And she had kind of a determination about her, walking with a certainty. She is always in a hurry and determined, so I don’t think much about that, although the moment registered for me. Then [Rep. Steny Hoyer] was escorted out, and I knew something was up. 

We were still moving on with the debate. Then, a Capitol Police officer went up to the podium and said, “The Capitol has been breached.” And I think, “Oh my God.” He said, “Stay in place; we’re locking all the doors.”

There was some confusion as those on the floor were escorted out. For those of us in the gallery, the police officer said that under your seat is a pouch. I’ve been to the gallery hundreds of times, and I never knew there were pouches underneath. 

Stories by experienced reporters you can trust and relate to.

Delivered directly to your inbox every weekday.

Please check your email to confirm your subscription!

Submitting…

Uh-oh! Something went wrong. Please try again later.

I’m trembling. I’m unzipping the pouch, and there’s an aluminum metal covering under the pouch. I’m ripping it open and out pops a gas mask that’s basically operational immediately. He says, “Put it on.” The hole is not that large and you have to pull it apart to get it over your head. I was struggling to do that, and then they said not to put them on yet. He said just sit in your seats.

Eventually, he said, “Move! Move! Move! Move!” We were moving under the brass railings from one section to another. The railings are meant to prevent people from doing that, so it was difficult. 

There was this loud pounding — the rioters wanted to break through. The officers put a large piece of furniture in front of the door and pulled their guns. I was lying on the floor in the second row of the gallery. And then I heard a gunshot ring out. I placed my cheek on the marble floor and thought, “Oh my God, I have survived the jungles of Guyana and here I am, in my own country, in this tabernacle of democracy, and I may be losing my life.” I flashed back to that primitive airstrip in 1978: Congressman Leo Ryan was shot 45 times and died; I was shot five times and lay there, waiting for the shooting to stop and preparing to die. I couldn’t believe this was happening in my own country.

Read more recollections from the Capitol

  • ‘They were in a frenzy’: Rep. Judy Chu of California recalls the Capitol riot
  • ‘Running for my life’: Rep. Norma Torres of California recalls the Capitol riot
  • ‘I’m running for my life. I cannot talk to you right now’: 23 women in Congress recall the Capitol riot

When I was shot five times in Guyana, I was in a foreign country with no contact with the outside world. I got shot I’d say three-quarters of the way through their shooting spree, so then I went through all the emotions of preparing to die. I feared that this could be the end. The difference, of course, was when we were on that airstrip in Guyana, the gunmen had guns but we didn’t. At least this time, we had six to eight officers in the chamber. So I flash back to all of that, certainly, but I just couldn’t believe that this was happening in this safe and protected Capitol, this symbol of democracy. We were now witnessing what was happening in third world countries and banana republics.

There was only one gun shot. Then they said, “All right, leave through this door.” But there was pounding on the door, so we said there’s pounding. And they said, “All right, stay back.” 

Eventually we could leave after about half an hour in the gallery. I thought the Capitol Police force was confused and panicked because they kept shouting orders to us that were contradictory. In fairness to them, they were under extraordinary pressure and probably did not have resources and were just acting on training that they had had without having the benefit of command telling them what to do. 

So we left, and as we were leaving the gallery, I looked to my right and on the floor are 10 to 12 rioters with their heads down, lying supine with two Capitol Police officers with their assault weapons pointed at them. So they had obviously reached the third floor. And then we raced down many flights of stairs and got to the Rayburn tunnel before we were escorted to a secure location.

There weren’t any protesters in the tunnel, so there was a sense that they had been subdued, but we don’t know what else was going to happen. We got to the secure facility, and it’s packed with members. I remember talking to the attending physician and saying this looks like a superspreader event to me. He said as long as everyone wears their masks, we should be fine. So I went into a room and called my family and friends, who were asking if I was OK. 

Then we turned on the TV. Everyone was basically in the dark about what was happening. I looked at the TV, and there were people all over the Capitol. They looked like ants. I thought,  “How are they ever going to get people out of there?” 

The goal was we wanted to go back in there and get back to work observing the counting of the Electoral College vote. I worried that we could have a sniper hide in one of the many nooks and crannies in the Capitol, but eventually they did secure the Capitol.

I think we finished around 2 or 3 in the morning, and I think I was just numb by the whole experience. I got on a plane that next morning, very early, around 6 a.m. There were all these people clad with Trump gear packed on the plane. These were the rioters and protesters. I had a window seat and just sort of did what I could to look anonymous, which I think was successful. 

I remember a number of us in the gallery later that weekend had a counseling session with a professional, and one of my colleagues talked about how he had been aching all over. My thighs had been aching, and I couldn’t figure out why. And we all realized it was from all of that crouching down and trying to get across the gallery. We were using muscles we didn’t normally use and an adrenaline rush that had tensed us up.

Share

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email

The 19th Represents Summit

Don’t miss our biggest event of 2023!

Register Today

Become a member

Up Next

Ann McLane Kuster

Election 2020

‘What if the elevator doors open and we got shot?’: Rep. Ann McLane Kuster of New Hampshire recalls the Capitol riot

The 19th collected first-hand accounts of January 6 from nearly two dozen women in Congress. 

Read the Story

The 19th
The 19th is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Our stories are free to republish in accordance with these guidelines.

  • Donate
  • Newsletter
  • Events
  • Search
  • Jobs
  • Fellowships
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Community Guidelines
  • Membership
  • Membership FAQ
  • Major Gifts
  • Sponsorship
  • Privacy
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram