The woman who was fired after flipping off President Donald Trump’s motorcade in October 2017 is now running for local office in Northern Virginia.
Juli Briskman, a resident of Loudoun County, announced Wednesday that she is running to represent the Algonkian District on the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, the nine-member body that governs the county.
Briskman was fired from her government contracting job after a photo of her raising her middle finger to Trump’s motorcade while biking in Sterling went viral.
“You might know me as the woman who was fired for flipping off the Presidential motorcade," Briskman wrote in a statement on Crowdpac, a crowdfunding website for political campaigns. “That story has been told many times nationally and internationally. And while it may be the most public display of my political opinion and activism, I have been deeply involved in the Loudoun County community for nearly 20 years.”
In her campaign statement, Briskman points to her 2017 actions as a sign that she is “not one to sit idle” when she sees something wrong.
“Whether it’s standing up for a cause, such as our First Amendment rights to peacefully protest the policies of the Trump administration, or working to ensure our children and teachers are given every opportunity to succeed, I do not back down when I see something is not right,” Briskman wrote.
The campaign announcement lists her involvement in groups like the Algonkian Running Club, Boy Scout Troop 956 and Girl Scouts, the Horizon Elementary School and political campaigns like State Sen. Jennifer Wexton’s 2018 congressional campaign.
Local
Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information
Briskman called for cooperation with the school board and better planning for growth in Loudoun County, "as we add 3,000 students to our schools each year and 33 people to the county population each day."
In the photo that circulated online last year, Briskman’s face is not visible, but she disclosed the incident to her supervisors and was fired, Briskman said. She said in April that she was suing her former employer, Akima LLC, because “what happened to me was unlawful and un-American.”
The lawsuit claims that the company's actions violated Virginia employment law for firing an employee out of fear of unlawful government retaliation.
