Photograph shows Natick Town Meeting member inside Capitol during violent riot
Sue Ianni is seen among a throng of pro-Trump protesters inside the Capitol, raising her right fist in defiance.
Published Jan 11, 2021
NATICK – A Town Meeting member was photographed participating in a violent riot inside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, and now an effort is under way to remove her from her elected position.
The Agence France-Presse photograph, distributed via Getty Images, shows Sue Ianni of Natick among a throng of protesters inside the Capitol, with her right arm raised. Standing next to her is a man believed to be Mark Sahady, a Malden resident and one of the organizers of the “Straight Pride” parade in Boston in 2019. Sahady has reported ties to far-right organizations.
Another Agence France-Presse photograph shows Ianni on a Washington, D.C., street carrying a Straight Pride flag, and walking next to Sahady.
Five people died in the melee inside the Capitol, including a Capitol police officer who suffered injuries confronting the angry mob.
Efforts to contact Ianni for comment by phone and email for this story were unsuccessful. Her three-year term expires in March 2022, said Town Clerk Diane Packer.
In a Daily News story published online Friday, Ianni declined comment when asked if she had marched to the Capitol and entered the building. She said, “Too many people were arrested wrongly for a peaceful protest after being waved in by Capitol police.”
Authorities, including the FBI, are looking for anyone who played a role in storming the Capitol.
The U.S. Attorney's office in Massachusetts declined comment beyond the statement it issued last week, when it called the events in D.C. "shocking" and "criminal."
"Anyone who traveled from Massachusetts with the intent to commit such crimes will be prosecuted in the District of Massachusetts," the statement said, in part.
Effort to remove Ianni
In a letter to Natick police and the town's Select Board, Benjamin F. Jackson calls on officials to explore all legal avenues to remove Ianni from her Town Meeting position. The request applies to any Town Meeting members or town officials who participated in the "insurrection."
But Natick regulations don’t permit a recall of a sitting Town Meeting member, according to Town Moderator Frank Foss. The town’s charter only permits recall efforts that pertain to residents who sit on multi-member boards, he said.
Foss said he received four emails asking what can be done to remove Ianni from her Town Meeting position. He forwarded them to the town's lawyer, Karis North, for review. Foss, who has served as town moderator for 14 years, said he is unaware of any successful recall of a Natick official over that period.
Jackson's letter also asked police to investigate those who planned and participated in Wednesday's "violent act against our nation," and pursue appropriate prosecution to the fullest extent of the law. The letter also asked for assurance that those who traveled to D.C. follow proper COVID-19 quarantine protocols.
An email to Natick Police Chief James Hicks seeking comment was not immediately returned.
Lead organizer to D.C.
Ianni said she was the lead organizer of 11 buses of Trump supporters that left Massachusetts on Tuesday for the Wednesday protest. The effort was done on behalf of Super Happy Fun America, which Ianni described as “a civil-rights organization that peacefully protests the leftist cabal taking over this country.”
The organization was founded in 2019, and at the time of its formation, Sahady was reportedly one of its officers. Ianni said she is one of the organization's directors.
In Friday's story, Ianni said those who attended Wednesday's protest should not be labeled "domestic terrorists."
“We were expressing our First Amendment rights to protest an illegal election,” Ianni said of Super Happy Fun America's attendance in D.C. “It was very moving, very inspiring. It’s what America is all about.”
She also said Trump never told protesters to go inside the Capitol, and that she doesn't think the president should be blamed for the actions of protesters.
Natick woman who attended violent protest in D.C. believes 'illegal election' is at play
Sue Ianni organized 11 buses to ride down to D.C. for the protest. She is concerned she, and all Trump supporters, are targets of retribution.
Published Jan 8, 2021
NATICK — Sue Ianni said she doesn’t understand why those who attended Wednesday’s protest in Washington, D.C., that resulted in violent clashes inside the U.S. Capitol are being called “domestic terrorists.”
Ianni, of Natick, attended the protest, having organized busloads of supporters of President Donald Trump through an organization called Super Happy Fun America. Ianni said she is one of the organization’s directors, and described Super Happy Fun America as “a civil-rights organization that peacefully protests the leftist cabal taking over this country.”
The organization's Facebook page on Friday had 9,730 "likes."
Ianni is also a Natick Town Meeting member, according to her LinkedIn page. Town Meeting is an elected body that votes on town affairs. It is not a partisan entity.
“We were expressing our First Amendment rights to protest an illegal election,” Ianni said of her group’s attendance in D.C. “It was very moving, very inspiring. It’s what America is all about.”
After order was restored inside the Capitol, Congress fulfilled its constitutional duty to count the Electoral College votes from the November presidential election, a 306-232 victory for the Democratic ticket of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
State secretaries of state certified the election results and the courts threw out dozens of lawsuits filed by Trump and his lawyers that challenged the integrity of the election. Judges ruled the claims had no legal evidence to support them.
Ianni declined to comment when asked if she marched to the U.S. Capitol and entered the building, offering that “too many people were arrested wrongly for a peaceful protest after being waived in by Capitol police.”
Ianna wasn’t close enough to see Trump as he delivered his Wednesday speech, when he told supporters to march to the Capitol as Congress started to count the electoral votes
But she did hear Trump’s words from where she was standing, and disputes the notion that Trump told his supporters to enter the Capitol.
“The president didn’t tell anyone to go into the Capitol. His message was to prohibit election fraud,” Ianni said. “You can’t blame him for the actions of a few protesters.”
Hundreds of protesters clashed with police, vandalized congressional offices and forced a lockdown of the Capitol.
According to Ianni, Capitol police stepped aside and allowed protesters into the building.
“The media is portraying us as a bunch of domestic terrorists,” Ianni said. “(The media) is showing the same video clips over and over. What you’re not seeing is a bunch of people walking around. It’s our right to this government, and the Capitol police waved them in.”
The Daily News received a video clip from Ianna that shows protesters opening a metal barricade and entering Capitol grounds while a uniformed officer waves them in. The source of the video is unknown.
Bus trip to D.C.
Ianni said she was the lead organizer of 11 buses that left Massachusetts on Tuesday for the ride to Washington. About 300 members of Super Happy Fun America filled six of the buses. The remaining five included members from various Massachusetts groups, Ianna said, including Vietnam Americans for Trump and Bay State Chinese-American Patriots. Both groups were major financial donors that paid for the bus trips, according to Ianni.
All buses made it back safely to Massachusetts. However, Ianni said she heard one man did not return, and doesn’t know what happened to him.
Concerns about retribution
Ianna believes she and all Trump supporters will be targeted for retribution after Wednesday's protest.
Congressional leaders are calling for Trump's cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove him from office. Others are calling for impeachment.
On Thursday, Trump released a video calling for a seamless transition of power to Biden and Harris.
Authorities are investigating Wednesday’s riot, including the FBI’s combing of social media for leads; arrests could result.
The Biden administration, and leftist antifa activists, cited by conservatives as a mastermind behind violent protests, could target Trump supporters, Ianni believes.
“As an American, we have the right to protest, not shut us down,” she said. “We can’t let them win. We will never let them win.”
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