An image circulating on social media allegedly shows a crowd of supporters of President Donald Trump in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, before demonstrations on January 6 to protest the result of the presidential election. This photo was falsely tagged: it actually shows “The Washington Prayer March 2020” on September 26, 2020.
Here is a post with the wrong title on January 5, 2020 visible here and with the caption “Washington DC at the moment!” Comments suggesting the photo shows a pro-Trump crowd include, “All these people are for Trump and many others!” and “And you want to tell me this man did not win … I do not think so.”
The photo actually shows “The Washington Prayer March 2020” on September 26, 2020, as seen here here , In front of the Lincoln Memorial (similar view on Google Maps here 3m8 1E1 3m6 1sAF1QipO6IYISGyCsteceyuuwlkHBw0cBnkWSJgOANbvS 2E10 3E11 6shttps: !!!!!% 2F% 2Flh5.googleusercontent.com% 2FP% 2FAF1QipO6IYISGyCsteceyuuwlkHBw0cBnkWSJgOANbvS% 3Dw203-H100-k no pilot 0-ya315.62994-ro-0-fo100! 7i8704! 8i4352)
The event, described as a “dedicated prayer procession aimed solely at asking God to heal our country. It is not a protest or a political event ”on its website prayermarch2020.com/about/, was reported by the media here, here, here.
Reuters found no evidence to suggest that a similar crowd was at the same venue on January 5th.
Thousands of Trump supporters, including a number of far-right nationalist groups, are expected to gather in the US capital on January 5 to certify Congress the day after Republican President Trump’s defeat of Democrat Joe Biden against the to oppose election on 3 November (here). .
Photos by Matthew Torres, a WUSA9 reporter, depict a small crowd at the Lincoln Memorial on the morning of January 6th. here .
Reuters footage here and a video of the Trump campaign here show a larger crowd gathered near the White House, awaiting President Donald Trump’s speech on January 6 (here).
Reuters has made similar claims using older material to portray the demonstrations on January 6, 2021 here, here, here and here.
VERDICT
Incorrectly marked. Photo shows religious march on September 2020, not Trump supporters before the January 6 protests in DC.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here