On May 30, 2020, thousands of freedom fighters gathered in Raleigh to protest in retaliation for the brutal murders of George Floyd and the many other victims of police brutality.
Something that began very peacefully was met with tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets, and other forms of violence from the Raleigh Police Department (RPD). RPD was fully equipped with riot gear, gas masks, and other equipment used to incite violence. There have also been accounts of SWAT teams being sent in to block off entrances.
On social media, there have been several accounts of the police department attempting to trace and track protestors using Stingray mobile trackers. Stingray mobile trackers are devices used to mimic cell phone towers and send out signals for phones to send out identifying information such as location.
After freedom fighters were attacked by Raleigh Police Department, they began to resist in downtown Raleigh. There have been accounts of several downtown businesses such as Walgreens, Jimmy Johns, CVS Pharmacy, Happy & Hale, Benny’s Capitales and others being broken into and spray painted. There have also been several accounts of fires. The glass of the courthouse was shattered. The Confederate Monument at the State Capitol was spray-painted with various phrases condemning racism and the justice/police system.
There have also been several other demonstrations across the state in cities such as Greensboro and Fayetteville. These demonstrations were also met with a similar outcome: violence from law enforcement resulting in resistance from the protestors.
Though we are not surprised, we are disappointed in how the Raleigh Police Department responded to the protesters. Once again, the leaders of Raleigh are on the wrong side. Raleigh’s leaders turned a blind eye to the actions of police officers, showing that their loyalty is not with the people of Raleigh but with their fellow police officers.
Earlier this month, ReOpen NC, a group against the lockdown restrictions placed amid COVID-19, took to these same streets. These protestors were decorated with various assault weapons and directly attacking law enforcement. Unlike what we saw tonight, they were not met with such violence from RPD. It is not a secret as to why this protest held a different outcome.
We commend each and every protester who went to Raleigh to fight for those whose lives were taken too soon by the unjustifiable actions of police officers. We continue to encourage the community to not post videos and pictures with protestors’ faces without their approval as we want to ensure the safety of these brave individuals.
We were able to have a reporter on the grounds in Raleigh, a full account from them will be coming in the next few days. We were also able to have a photographer capture pictures, one of which is linked in this article. We have posted a photo gallery with more pictures on our website and our social media channels.
Please donate to the NC bail funds. https://www.nccbailfund.org/donate
https://www.takeactionch.com/donations
Lawyers willing to help those who were detained (for free):
Ed Bartholomew – Raleigh: The Law Office of E.M. Bartholomew II, PLLC – (919) 853-7467
Scott Holmes – Durham/Raleigh: NCCU School of Law – (919) 599-1963
Robert Corbett – Charlotte: The Corbett Law Firm – (704) 401-5299
Charlotte Uprising – Charlotte: Organizers forwarding names to local attorneys – (704) 288-8840
Brenton Boyce – Greensboro: The Boyce Firm – (336) 254-4417
Jason Keith – Greensboro: KCA Law Firm – (336) 574-0368
Tom Cadwallader – Raleigh: (650) 759-8196
T. Greg Doucette – Durham/Raleigh: (919) 606-7158
George Gibbs – Charlotte: Gibbs Law – (980) 228-6387
Ana Nunez – Raleigh: (919) 828-5570
John McWilliam – Raleigh: (919) 772-4000
Damon Chetson – Raleigh: (919) 946-5392
Malcolm Matheson – Raleigh: (919) 335-5291
Paige Miles – Raleigh: (919) 747-3244
Tiffany Scott – Charlotte: The Snow Legal Group, PLLC – (704) 358-0026
Ed Martin – Charlotte: Seifer Flatlow, PLLC – (704) 512-0606
Richard Faulkner – Pitt County/Greenville: Faulkner Law Offices, PLLC – (919) 618-2779
Lindsey Bivens Granados – Raleigh: The Law Offices of Wiley Nickel, PLLC – (919) 650-2851
Ryan Stowe – Salisbury/Charlotte: Stowe Law Firm, PLLC – (704) 856-9502
Kahran Myers Davis – Greensboro: The Law Offices of T. Greg Doucette – (727) 742-5193
Fred Adams – Winston Salem (336) 725-6559
James Quander – Winston Salem (336) 725-6600
Helen Parsonage – Winston-Salem: (336) 714-4480
Asi Jackson – Raleigh/Durham: (919) 729-2742
Charles Kunz – Statewide: (919) 479-3490
Elizabeth Stephenson – Raleigh/Durham: (919) 719-3470
Kellie Mannette — Orange/Chatham counties: (919) 351-5586
Saleisha Averhart – Raleigh: (919) 741-6798
