At least 6 arrested as black-clad protesters march in Raleigh
Six people were arrested in downtown Raleigh Tuesday night, police said, after a crowd of about 100 people clad in black clothing took to the streets on Election Day and marched for about an hour.
The crowd shrunk after the arrests around 10 p.m.
The protesters marched on the streets around the State Capitol for several blocks while Raleigh police trailed behind them on carts. The police began threatening them with arrests for marching on the streets and not the sidewalks, citing it as an unlawful assembly that was failing to disperse.
Police quickly arrested one individual shortly after protesters lit fireworks that exploded loudly in front of ORO Restaurant & Lounge on East Martin Street.
The march subsided as protesters ran away from police. The march went around more blocks until three protesters were arrested on South Blount Street shortly after 10 p.m., with at least one person running away and barely escaping arrest from officers.
Charges included failure to disperse; assault on a law enforcement officer; disorderly conduct; and resist, delay and obstruct.
The protesters brandished signs reading “Whoever wins we lose” in reference to the 2020 elections, as well as a banner reading “In solidarity with Philadelphia” in connection to Black Lives Matter protests over the police killing of Walter Wallace Jr., a Black man, last month in Philadelphia.
After starting to march shortly after 9:15 p.m., the group chanted slogans from the Black Lives Matter protests seen nationwide and in the Triangle throughout the summer.
They also yelled “Abolish R.P.D.”
There were no reports of property damage, but several shops, apartment complexes, bars and restaurants near City Market and around downtown Raleigh had their windows and doors on the street boarded up.
An employee at Reliable Jewelry and Loan said they boarded up the shop when Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin announced a curfew last Friday and they decided to leave it up through the election.
Employees at Dollar General Express or DGX, which was destroyed during the protests this summer and recently reopened, said the store has been boarded up for a few days in anticipation of election night.
A downtown apartment complex on Davie Street also boarded up its windows and doors with plywood. Some first-floor, street-facing apartments also had wooden boards nailed up protecting their windows and patios.
News & Observer reporter Kate Murphy contributed to this story.
This story was originally published November 3, 2020 at 10:20 PM with the headline "At least 6 arrested as black-clad protesters march in Raleigh."