As a veteran, he was particularly horrified, he said, to learn that his fellow veterans were involved in the insurgency, including Jake Angeli, also known as “QAnon Shaman”, and Ashli Babbitt, who had been shot on Capitol Hill.
“It was a dagger in the heart,” said Smith, who was a combat medic in Afghanistan. “The mere fact that you served in the military does not give you impunity to storm the Capitol building.”
On his drive back to Germantown, Md., Smith spotted remnants of Wednesday’s riot strewn through the streets. Garbage littered Pennsylvania Avenue and adjacent areas, and signs and stickers with racist and fascist symbols and messages were “everywhere,” he recalls.
Smith decided he wanted to do something about it, calling on a group of veterans and volunteers to do a thorough sweep of the area around the Capitol and downtown DC Beyond Ridding the Area of Hate Marks. Smith hoped to reinforce the fact that the veterans who participated in the siege did not represent them all.
On January 10, nearly 200 volunteers gathered in McPherson Square, bin bags in hand. They dispersed and spent two hours collecting “Stop the Steal” and other pro-Trump props that had been littered during the riots, and also used scrapers and adhesive remover to peel off the signs and stickers. featuring logos and symbols of various neo-Nazis and alt-right groups.
“There was so much good energy, especially in the fallout from something so negative,” Smith said.
The volunteers split into five groups, each led by a veteran, who guided them along a mapped route to the Capitol.
“It was like a massive street sweep,” Smith said. “We haven’t neglected anything. It was amazing. “
Smith organized the cleanup on social media through an organization he started in June called Continue to Serve. Its goal is to create a community of veterans who stand up for justice and equality.
“We want to empower like-minded veterans to devote themselves to activism and community service,” he said.
Smith said he was driven to create Continue to Serve in response to the racial unrest following the death of George Floyd.
“When I saw Lafayette Square emerge, I burst into tears. I couldn’t believe this was happening in America, and that [law enforcement] would attack peaceful protesters, ”he said.
He quickly posted “a long rant about the veterans standing up” on a DC Reddit page.
Messages expressing similar sentiments from other DC, Maryland and Virginia veterans have poured in. A small group decided to collectively attend the Black Lives Matter protests, with the aim of providing a sense of security for the protesters, while providing medical and logistical support.
“We just want to come out and amplify and support their voices to make sure we stick to our oath, which is to uphold the Constitution, thereby securing the rights of all our citizens,” Smith said, adding he and other alumni Fighters sometimes acted as a mediator between police and protesters during the summer to make sure they felt safe when they marched.
Hans Palmer, 35, a Marine Corps veteran, ran into the Continue to Serve team at Black Lives Matter Plaza last July.
“They were wearing ‘Vets for BLM’ shirts and I said, ‘Hey, I’m a veteran,’” Palmer recalls. He asked to join them.
“We’re not all conservatives, and that’s a stereotype that I really want to erase,” said Palmer, who served in the Marine Corps for six years. “We need real systemic change in this country, and I think direct grassroots action on the streets is the way to go.
In addition to supporting social justice and honoring their oath to protect the Constitution, Continue to Serve hopes to ensure that like-minded veterans know they are not alone, Smith said.
“I want our organization to be diverse; I don’t want that to be singular in his thoughts, ”said Smith, who grew up in what he called a“ hyper-conservative ”family. “I just want social progress, and it seems to me that these are ideals that everyone should want.”
Ashley Carothers, 34, an Air Force veteran who got involved with Continue to Serve this summer, agreed. She is also deeply disturbed by the siege.
“To see veterans and active service members participating in the attack on Capitol Hill was just appalling,” she said. “The oath is something that is rooted in you. There is nothing that negates this oath; you carry on these values throughout your life. “
Although she left the military in 2013, Carothers pledged to continue serving the country through activism and volunteer efforts.
Since the summer, Continue to Serve has grown into a community of 45 veterans, most of whom live nearby. A few others from across the country also stumbled upon the group on social media, and although they were distant, asked to join.
This includes Lindsay Rousseau, 40, a Los Angeles-based veteran, who hooked up with Smith in August. Since then, Rousseau has been working remotely on research and logistics with Continue to Serve.
“We let people know that veterans are not a homogeneous group,” Rousseau said. “We really care about taking the oath to the Constitution, we have not taken the oath to a person.”
Although Rosseau couldn’t be herself cleaning up the Capitol, she was happy to see dozens of fellow veterans band together, she said.
Smith is now focused on growing Continue to Serve, hoping to host monthly rallies including more cleanups, food drives, and other events to bring the veteran community together.
“We want this country we fought for to be where it is meant to be,” he said.
