Sen. Mitt Romney joins Black Lives Matter protest in Washington

WASHINGTON â€”  U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney marched Sunday in the nation’s capital in a protest against police mistreatment of minorities, making him the first Republican senator known to do so.

Romney, who represents Utah, posted a tweet showing himself wearing a mask as he walked with protesters in Washington. Above the photo he wrote: “Black Lives Matter.�

Romney, who was walking with a Christian group, told NBC News that he needed to be there.

“We need a voice against racism; we need many voices against racism and against brutality,� he said. “We need to stand up and say, ‘Black lives matter.’ �

On Saturday, Romney tweeted a photo of his father, who was governor of Michigan from 1963 to 1969, marching with civil rights protesters in the 1960s.

Above the photo, Romney wrote: “This is my father, George Romney, participating in a Civil Rights march in the Detroit suburbs during the late 1960s — ‘Force alone will not eliminate riots,’ he said. ‘We must eliminate the problems from which they stem.’�

Romney also wrote two other tweets, on May 30 and May 28, criticizing the Minneapolis officers involved in the death of George Floyd.

The May 30 tweet said: “The George Floyd murder is abhorrent. Peaceful protests underscore the urgency of addressing injustices. But violence drowns the message of the protesters and mocks the principles of justice.�

The May 28 tweet said: “No Americans should fear enmity and harm from those sworn to protect us. The death of George Floyd must not be in vain: Our shock and outrage must grow into collective determination to extinguish forever such racist abuse.�

Romney has been one of the more independent members of the U.S. Senate’s GOP caucus. He voted to remove President Trump from office after the impeachment trial.