‘Hands up, don’t shoot.’ Hundreds march peacefully around Charlotte during 10th night of protests
Largely peaceful demonstrations were held for the 10th straight day in and around Charlotte on Sunday over the killing of George Floyd and others who have died at the hands of police officers.
Floyd, a black man, was killed in Minneapolis after a police officer knelt on his neck for close to nine minutes. His death has prompted protests against racism and police brutality nationally.
Marches and rallies were held in uptown, Ballantyne, Concord, Huntersville, Matthews and surrounding communities on Sunday afternoon and into the evening. Two people were arrested, accused of shoving a police officer in uptown Charlotte, following gatherings and a march that involved hundreds of people.
The uptown march began Sunday around 7 p.m., leaving from Romare Bearden Park. Protesters moved from the park and headed toward Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department’s headquarters. Others gathered in Marshall Park to write notes to Floyd’s family on a banner. Photos of people who have been killed by a police officer were displayed at Marshall Park, including one of Jonathan Ferrell, a black man who was shot and killed by a white CMPD officer in 2013. Ferrell was unarmed.
Ryan Baker, a nail salon owner in Charlotte, said she and her cousin organized one peaceful protest to begin at Romare Bearden. Baker, 21, criticized the way police officers have responded to protesters so far in Charlotte, saying “They’re coming out here ready for a fight we didn’t pick.” She referenced the use of tear gas on previous nights and officers wearing riot gear.
On Sunday, just before 7 p.m., police presence was light around the protest gathering spot, with uniformed officers talking in small groups with those in attendance. As several hundred demonstrators gathered, Baker told the crowd: “Until they stop inciting violence against us, until they stop killing us, we’re not gonna stop protesting.”
Those marching in uptown chanted “Hands up, don’t shoot,” “No justice, no peace” and “Black lives matter.”
Stopping in front of the police headquarters building on East Trade Street around 8 p.m., protesters sat and kneeled. Chants included “If we don’t get no justice, you don’t get no peace” and “No Trump, no KKK, no racist USA.”
Late Sunday, organizers with Charlotte Uprising, which helped facilitate the memorial and gathering at Marshall Park, said two people involved with the demonstrations were arrested.
The arrests came nearly an hour after organized protesting with hundreds of people in uptown had ended.
In a post on Twitter, CMPD officials said Captain Brad Koch was walking with a group of protesters on 4th Street around 10:25 p.m. when he was “shoved.” Video of the confrontation, shared on a Facebook page called “Keep Charlotte Boring,” showed a small group of people telling Koch to leave as he stood near a table outside the jail where activists were gathered. Koch appeared to be alone and began to walk away but was followed.
CMPD said other protesters attempted to protect Koch during what police officials described late Sunday as “an attack.”
Backup officers on motorcyles were called and “OC spray” or pepper spray was used, according to CMPD and the video posted on social media. Two people were arrested and an officer was injured, CMPD officials said.
Earlier in the day, hundreds joined a rally and march near the Matthews town hall. The gathering was organized by local faith leaders and well attended by Butler High School students, WBTV, the Observer’s news partner, reported. Matthews Mayor John Higdon, Police Chief Clark Pennington and others spoke. One leader said: “All lives matter and yes, black lives matter also .... This is why we are here today in 90 degree weather.” Camille Harvell, a Butler graduate, said policing is “rooted in racism” and that she had no trust or faith in police officers.
In Ballantyne, adults and children gathered and kneeled in silence for 8 minutes and 46 seconds — the amount of time Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, a white man who has now been charged in Floyd’s murder, held his knee to Floyd’s neck.
Protests in Charlotte
Though the protests since May 29 have been overwhelmingly peaceful in Charlotte, there have been infrequent instances of property damage, and police have used harshly-criticized tactics on demonstrators.
Protesters and some elected officials have decried one such instance, on Tuesday evening, in which police used chemical agents on largely peaceful protesters. A video from alternative newspaper Queen City Nerve appears to show police using chemical agents on a crowd of protesters walking near 4th and College streets uptown. When the demonstrators turned in the other direction, officers on that side blocked their path, also releasing chemical agents.
Congresswoman Alma Adams, a Democrat who represents portions of Charlotte, sharply denounced the use of tear gas on protesters after the incident. Adams attended the rally in Huntersville on Sunday.
Several Charlotte City council members have also asked for the name of the police official who authorized the use of chemical agents on the crowd to be disciplined, but CMPD Chief Kerr Putney would not disclose the person’s name, the Observer reported.
Council member Braxton Winston said Friday he is introducing an amendment to the city’s budget that would stop the city from spending money in the next fiscal year to purchase new or maintain existing stock of chemical agents used by police to control and disperse crowds.
This story was originally published June 7, 2020 at 6:57 PM.
