Deaf man livestreams US Capitol mob riots
Cesar Rocha, a Deaf man from Austin, Texas, who is a freelance videographer who has worked extensively to cover Black Lives Matter protests, attended the January 6 Capitol rally and captured live footage of the riots and shared the videos.
We did an interview and here are clips from his livestream and the interview.
[Video clips of people marching to the US Capitol from Cesar Rocha of Access to Activism]
CESAR ROCHA:
The reason why I did this is because I’ve attended about 50 to 60 BLM protests. My Deaf friend, Tyree, was shot with a beanbag by the Austin Police Department. I filmed the protests after that. I want to provide equal access to deaf people. My deaf friends saw things and I caught it in raw LIVE footage. The news would post videos later. So I did this for my deaf community.
[Video clips of people fighting with US Capitol police from Cesar Rocha of Access to Activism]
ALEX (DAILY MOTH):
What are your political views? If you feel comfortable with labeling yourself? Did you go to support Trump or?
CESAR ROCHA:
I’m very independent. I’m independent. I support what is right from what is wrong. Do the right thing. Don’t do the wrong thing.
[Video clips of US Capitol riots]
CESAR ROCHA:
I had to fall back because people were out of control. They brandished the fences and threw it at police, but they were not arrested. People didn’t let pepper spray bother them, even if they got sprayed in the face. They are so loyal to Trump. It’s amazing to see.
[Video clips from US Capitol riots.]
CESAR ROCHA:
In those moments I realized people were doing excessive things. They were actively breaking the law. I just can’t describe it. They were breaking the law! But the Capitol Police weren’t doing anything. They were allowed to riot. It got me confused.
[Video clips from US Capitol riots.]
CESAR ROCHA:
Yeah, I got a lot of criticism. Many deaf people said I went into the Capitol. They called me a terrorist. First of all I didn’t enter the Capitol. I’m not a terrorist. I was tempted to enter the building, yes, but I wanted to do the right thing. I avoid getting in trouble. I refused to enter like others. I only film what I see.
ALEX (DAILY MOTH):
I asked him what impacted him the most from the experience.
CESAR ROCHA:
Yeah, this has been bothering me. When I compare D.C. with Austin, I feel that people of color are not getting equal treatment. There was white privilege. They got away with it. Black people suffer more. It’s just not the same. One group gets beaten up, but the other doesn’t. It confuses me.
ALEX (DAILY MOTH):
Here is a video from our sponsor and then we’ll continue with this news.
[Sponsored Video from Convo]
ALEX (DAILY MOTH):
Thank you for your time, Cesar. He said he plans to cover more protests in the future.
CESAR ROCHA:
Our page is called “Access to Activism.” That page is supported by interpreters, Deaf interpreters, transcribers, and this team is incredible. I couldn’t do this without our team. We make it work, for you.
[Video clips from US Capitol riots]
ALEX (DAILY MOTH):
I know there are multiple hearing livestream providers out there and now we have a Deaf person doing this type of thing.
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