Charlotte mayor says curfews won’t be used amid Floyd protests
Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles says the city has not enacted a curfew amid nighttime demonstrations over the death of George Floyd because protesters deserve to have their say — as long as they do it lawfully.
“I believe deeply that people should be allowed to protest,” Lyles said in a Wednesday news press conference at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center. “They should be able to protest within the law, and a curfew lifts that right.”
The mayor’s comments follow the city’s pattern of peaceful protests during the day over the killing of Floyd, a N.C. native, by a Minneapolis police officer, followed by more confrontational demonstrations after dark.
Property has been destroyed. More than 100 people have been arrested. Standoffs between police and demonstrators have grown far more tense.
At her press conference, Lyles announced that she and the council have called for a state investigation into an incident late Tuesday night in which police officers were seen on video trapping a group of protesters along an uptown street then targeting them with chemical agents.
Wednesday night, which included a late-evening march led by Lyles and City Council members through uptown, was the city’s most peaceful since the protests began on Friday.
Curfews in many hard-hit U.S. cities and a matter of growing debate. In Los Angeles, where close to 100 protesters were arrested Tuesday night, the American Civil Liberties Union has sued, claiming that “draconian curfews” have “entirely eliminated all political protest in the night hours.”
Meanwhile in Raleigh, where residents have been under a curfew for three straight nights, city spokesperson Julia Milstead said the nighttime restrictions on activity have eased tensions, providing “the positive pause needed as we move forward as a more unified community.”
Lyles declared a state of emergency Sunday afternoon, a move that gives her the authority to order a curfew. She said Wednesday she does not plan to do so, particularly when matters of race and policing are involved.
“It’s a tool we have, but I don’t see us doing a curfew,” she said. “I would hope we’d continue to be able to have protests occur and do it in a safe manner. For the protesters and the community they’re protesting in.”
Uptown Charlotte resident Jim Hall said Wednesday that the mayor is sacrificing public safety for the rights of protesters, some of them responsible for violent acts. He called for a curfew.
“Anyone with common sense knows that those ‘protesting’ after dark aren’t there for that,” Hall said in an email to the Observer. “It’s time to shut the city down down at night. Those who want to protest in peace have plenty of time before dark to do so.”
In North Carolina, Fayetteville and Raleigh put their overnight curfews in place on Sunday and Monday, respectively.
Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin told the Observer that the curfew quickly restored order in his hometown, though he acknowledged some pushback from those who feel their rights to demonstrate had been compromised.
“For the most part, our residents did not like the type of lawlessness they saw Saturday,” Colvin said. “They were anxious and on edge and really frightened. We couldn’t have another night of looting.”
Colvin said the curfew will remain “as long as it is needed.”
In Raleigh, Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin extended her curfew into Thursday morning, despite two consecutive peaceful nights.
“There were no injuries, no property damage and no arrests. We saw differing voices coming together sharing, listening and learning,” Baldwin said in a Wednesday statement. “Even with this progress, we cannot relax our focus on keeping our public safe and secure.”
Protest-related arrests under the Raleigh curfew have also dropped. Laura Hourigan, a public affairs specialist for the Raleigh Police Department says officers made 31 weekend arrests compared to five curfew violations on Monday and one on Tuesday.
In Charlotte, City Council member Matt Newton said he supports Lyles’ decision not to use a curfew, despite some violent incidents.
“You have to strike a balance,” he said. “But I don’t the unlawfulness has occurred to a magnitude necessary to cut off the voices of the lawful — at least to this point.”
Writer Alison Kuznitz contributed.
Michael Gordon: 704-358-5095, @MikeGordonOBS
This story was originally published June 4, 2020 at 12:05 PM.
