When Black Lives Matter (BLM) blocked a Minnesota man from his home, police intervened — arresting the man.
BLM protested Saturday outside the home of a county attorney responsible for bringing charges against former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter, who recently shot Daunte Wright, apparently by accident. The protest was designed to pressure the attorney into upgrading Potter’s existing second-degree manslaughter charge to a murder charge.
About 100 people turned out, totally obstructing Stillwater Avenue.
After nearly two hours of protesting, the BLM activists began to march down the road towards Fourth Street, where they encountered a driver trying to reach his home.
As the driver attempted to turn onto Stillwater Avenue, he was blocked by three motorcyclists and a yellow-vested protest organizer who told him he would not be allowed to drive to his house.
“I live right there,” the man exclaimed, pointing to his home as the bikers dismounted and approached him.
A minor scuffle ensued as the bikers shoved the man and the man shoved back. Officers quickly intervened, detaining the man, putting him in the back of a squad car and moving his vehicle out of the way so the BLM march could continue.
A BLM-affiliated streamer who broadcast the protest narrated this event, inferring that the protesters would have harmed the man had police not detained him.
“The police came and grabbed him and pulled him away, which was probably good for his safety,” the streamer said.
One of the protest organizers then debriefed the group on what had just happened.
“There was an angry motorist who refused to move his car, the police were on the scene,” she said. “They [the police] took him away, put him in the back of a squad car. They moved his vehicle out of the street so we can peacefully continue our march.”
At some point, police also blocked roads, preventing anybody from accessing or leaving their homes while the protest was allowed to continue.
Just talked with Stillwater PD Chief Brian Mueller. He said the crowd is exercising its 1st amendment right and not breaking any laws. Police will block the road to ensure cars don't drive toward the crowd. @WCCO #DaunteWright pic.twitter.com/eZsjFivUji
— Jeff Wagner (@Jeff_Wagner4) April 17, 2021
This is not the first time Stillwater police have allowed protest groups to disrupt traffic in the town. Last summer, armed Black Panthers shut down a main road during a protest that involved several hundred individuals.
Kyle Hooten
Kyle Hooten is Managing Editor of Alpha News. His coverage of Minneapolis has been featured on television shows like Tucker Carlson Tonight and in print media outlets like the Wall Street Journal.
