Charlotte protestors
Scroll down for: “live” updates; Background; Bail support; Solidarity statements; NYC & Balt Solidarity actions (FB); more.
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**URGENT Action Needed–Stop Ongoing Repression of Protestors
-Calendar of Actions / See charlotteuprising/events/ for most recent
**SEPT 24, 2016; 1pm: SHOW UP IN CHARLOTTE : A call to mobilize 1,000s against police violence March starting from Marshall Park in Uptown Charlotte / 800 East 3rd St. – All ages, rain or shine
**Thurs, 9/22/16: March on Uptown Charolotte: FB
**”Live” Updates – from activists “on the ground” in Charlotte
-Wed/ 9/28/16: “The march Saturday was tremendous with a little over 1,000 marching. That evening the rebellion in the streets was well over 1,000, if not larger; was easily 4 nights in a row with 1000 or more folks in the streets from 8:30pm until 2-3am each night, with several hundred defying 12 midnight curfews every night. On Saturday, during the late night demonstration (after a few nights of demonstrators shutting down various interstates around downtown) the police preemptively shut down I-277 for a few miles of downtown and blocked access to all exit ramps much ahead of us. This was a busy bar night and many bars and business boarded up and shut down, all losing lots of revenue. That night, as the curfew was defied at 12midnight and rallied in front of CMPD headquarters, they lifted curfew to 2am. Notably, National Guard had hummers stationed primarily in front of main headquarters of Bank of America.
Sunday, there was an action called by the Tribe an hour before the Panthers Vs. Vikings football game, with easily 400-500 people. (Slanted coverage.) The main intersection in front of the stadium was occupied as over 70,000 football fans had to walk past the militant chants. It was covered on ESPN and other national and international stations. After marching around downtown for few hours folks gathered again until game let out. Important to note that Quarterback Cam Newton wore an MLK sweatshirt and another player, Ball, held his fist with one finger up during national anthem. Outside the protesters all took a kneel before the game and apparently national anthem was not played on television. There were reports that this game was the most under-sold game in over 2 years; with tickets all costing over $120, that is a lot of lost revenue.
On Monday there was a 10am press conference called by he Charlotte Uprising since many of demands from the group had not been getting any press. Article on press conference.
Also there was a fast food worker strike at the opposite end of town, with around 150 fast food workers, lots from Charlotte, but also several other surrounding cities in NC and beyond. They marched to join in with an NAACP event.
The lies and cover up in every aspect of this struggle are just so entirely egregious. Now the cops, which clearly planted a gun on Keith Scott’s dead body, are stating that it was a stolen gun (of course it was, cops probably apprehended it and placed on his dead body) and that some yet-to-be revealed person sold Scott the gun. Clearly they are pulling in more agents to cover their story. See more.
The same happened with the police murder of Justin Carr, who was shot in the temple with rubber bullets Wednesday night. Many eye witnesses state emphatically that no one in crowd had a gun or made shots; in fact riot police shot three protesters, and are now blaming it on some guy, Rayquan Borum, who they have arrested and supposedly claims to have shot Carr. Most importantly, no one in the streets believes it. Lots of folks not in the streets don’t believe this story. A press conference had eye witness give testimony that it was a cop that shot Carr.
One of other thing to note, Mills Shaka Zulu Gill was the person on scene Tuesday night when Scott was killed and was the one that initially broadened out the mass awareness of the situation, soon gathering over 1 million people watching his live feed of the first and second nights of protests. After this first two nights, the police put a warrant out for his arrest, stating that he looted some building, which is a set up to repress him for getting the word out so far and wide. He initially went on the run, but then police raided his house and he handed himself in.”
-Fri, 9/23/16: “As you know, Charlotte has been rocked in recent days by a police occupation following the police murder of Keith Lamont Scott, an unarmed Black man. As the governor escalates action against protesters on the ground, the uprising is gaining steam — this is a movement moment, and we need all hands on deck. We are asking allied organizations to send out the information below to your networks, *especially* your networks in the Southeast….” (from a local organizer via email)
NYC Action
– Eyewitness account of initial uprising /
– Bond Fund for Charlotte protesters /
– NYC Protest: FB / Balt Protest: FB /
– – – – – Background Details & Initial Uprising – – – – – –
Keith Lamont Scott was a 43 year old Black Father who was Autistic.
On Tuesday September 20, 2016 Keith was sitting inside of his car reading a book when an undercover Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Officer by the name of Brentley Vinson ran up to his car and shot him Four times, killing him.
Folks were out in the streets that night until early Wed. morning, shutting down I-85 (a major interstate) for several hours up until 4am. Demonstrators were teargassed and cops were flashbanging. At the height of the action, Facebook cut almost all livefeeds, so some people couldn’t catch on camera when the teargassing began.Local organizers are meeting to strategize and then canvassing to build further actions.
On Tuesday, our brother and neighbor Keith Lamont Scott was killed by Charlotte police. He was sitting in his car, reading a book, and waiting for his son to come home on the school bus. We believe he was profiled and killed by police, and that CMPD is not telling the truth about his murder.
Tuesday night, Charlotte police attacked a grieving community with riot police and tear gas. Wednesday night, Charlotte police fired into a crowd, seriously injuring a protestor and inflaming our grief.
Today, (Thursday-9/22/16) our city is occupied by the National Guard and we are in a State of Emergency!
Charlotte, the latest city to be wrecked by police violence against Black people and violence against Black people, is a national crisis. We need to end this epidemic now! Let’s show the nation that we stand against police violence that targets Black people and our communities. Let’s show that Charlotte, and the nation, will no longer tolerate the routine murders of Black people by an unaccountable system of policing.
Come to Charlotte to make a historic stand and to demand dignity and respect for Black lives.
We are: Charlotte Tribe, Charlotte Trans and Queer People of Color Collective, Charlotte SURJ, Ignite NC, Black Youth Project-Durham Chapter, Beloved Community Center, Youth Organizing Institute , Southern Vision Alliance, Durham Solidarity Center, Workers World Party, Queer People Of Color Collective GSO, NC TROUBLMakers, Million Hoodies, Black University.”
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