Ben & Jerry's Co-Founder Arrested While Protesting the Case Against Julian Assange

Cohen had shared in a tweet on Wednesday that he planned to “protest the criminalization of the free press and the prosecution” of Assange, acknowledging that the move would "risk arrest"

Ben Cohen, co-founder of popular American ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s, was arrested Thursday outside the Department of Justice while protesting in support of Wikileaks publisher Julian Assange.

Cohen had shared in a tweet on Wednesday that he planned to “protest the criminalization of the free press and the prosecution” of Assange, acknowledging that the move would "risk arrest."

Assange is alternately celebrated as a courageous whistleblower and reviled by U.S. officials as a traitor of life-or-death secrets following his organization's leaking of confidential military records and diplomatic cables, as well as damaging emails about Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign which American authorities believe were first stolen by Russians.

Related: WikiLeaks' Julian Assange Marries Stella Moris Inside His London Prison

In May 2019, the U.S. charged Assange with 17 counts under the Espionage Act. He is currently fighting extradition in a high-security prison in southeast London, where he's been since 2019.

On Thursday, Cohen protested the charges against Assange alongside Jodie Evans, the co-founder of social justice organization CODEPINK.

In footage of the protest shared to social media, Cohen can be seen lighting a “Freedom of the Press” sign on fire as he said: “Freedom of the press is going up in smoke.”

He then asked to enter the Department of Justice building, and was denied by security guards, at which point he and Evans allegedly sat on the steps in front of the entrance until they were handcuffed.

Later, Cohen returned to Twitter to share that the two had been released from custody.

"Jodie and I have been released from police custody after being held for ~3hrs. It's time for @POTUS to follow thru with his promise," Cohen wrote. "Journalism is NOT a crime."

Cohen added the hashtags, #Dropthecharges and #FreeAssange.

Related: Ben & Jerry's Releases Statement About Dismantling White Supremacy: 'Silence Is NOT An Option'

Cohen and his co-founder Jerry Greenfield has a long history of activism, which they have expressed both through their personal actions as well as their company's ice cream flavors.

Their 2019 flavor Justice Remix'd was dedicated to criminal justice reform and in 2018, the company announced the flavor Pecan Resist, aimed at resisting the “regressive and discriminatory policies” of former President Donald Trump's administration.

Other past socially conscious Ben & Jerry’s flavors include Save Our Swirled, aimed at bringing attention to climate change, and I Dough, I Dough, renamed in celebration of the legalization of same-sex marriage.

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