Interaction with armed demonstrators leaves Raleigh family shaken, angry and sad

[G_j]

https://www.newsobserver.com/article242632046.html

RALEIGH

Pushing his two kids in a stroller along Fayetteville Street on Saturday morning, Deonte Thomas wandered into a confrontation with a small group of armed demonstrators that left him fearing for his family 24 hours later.

Videos shot by the protesters and The News & Observer and posted online show one unidentified man from the group, carrying a large pipe wrench and crossing the street at the intersection with Davie Street. He heads straight toward Thomas, his wife and their children in a crosswalk.

“I will question to the end of my days how I reacted or should have reacted,” Thomas, an attorney for the Wake County public defender’s office, told The News & Observer in an interview Sunday.

“Could I have handled things differently? What is going to happen if someone reacts differently toward them? I wish I was cursing and more aggressive with them in some parts of the video but that just gives them ammunition to say ‘Look at this angry black guy out here cursing in the middle of the street in front of his kids.’”

Read more here: https://www.newsobserver.com/article242632046.html#storylink=cpy

[Hortensis]

1. He shouldn't be hard on himself. His family's fine, so he

did right.

Not quite the same thing, but I'm a 5'2" white woman who's lived and worked in a wide variety of neighborhoods. Over the decades I've had various young men run diagonally across the street to pass me close in an obvious ploy to have fun intimidating me -- clearly a little game a lot older than me. I've wanted to look them in the eye and laugh at them or, as I got older, ask them sternly what their mothers would say, but instead I always altered my route enough to show that I was responding as they wanted -- the idea being not to challenge any of them into acting out more. Because that possibility that never did happen needed to be avoided.

Irritating, but being sensible and responsible doesn't involve whipping out the ol' balls for comparison. Even usually. Over the years, I may have protected at least one stupid kid from hurting himself, not just me, and my experience suggests they all grew out of it.

[sakabatou]

2. These "protestors" aren't protestors

They're there to intimidate others.

[Pacifist Patriot]

4. Thank you. That's a really important distinction.

They aren't protesting, they are terrorizing.

[Evolve Dammit]

16. Yes they are

[Takket]

7. yes.......... exactly.......

we have the right to protest but there are rules to be followed still. and approaching other people on the streets with a weapon to intimidate them is absolutely NOT a protected right.

[SammyWinstonJack]

12. "They're good people, they're just angry, work with them".

That's what The Maggot said.

[Warpy]

21. Right wing terrorists are what they are

They're looking for fights to pick. I sincerley hope they picked the wrong one this time, a family out trying to get a little exercise and sunshine.

The country is going to have to deal with these asshats now or this shit is going to escalate.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

3. That asshole with the pipe wrench!

Leave people alone, you filthy slime!

For purely selfish reasons too, this nonsense is getting old! I'm getting tired of the wary expressions from black people towards ME, just because I look like "king of the whities" with my pale skin! (Well, not recently since I'm not in the public now.)

[BeyondGeography]

5. Handled that assclown perfectly if you ask me

[guillaumeb]

6. Is that wrench a substitute for something? eom

[Augiedog]

8. I can only imagine where he shoves that wrench when he holsters it.

[Solly Mack]

9. Notice the stance of the woman. Defensive. Preparing

for a hit.

Her whole body prepared to act. The arm and shoulder up as if expecting to lift higher to stave off a blow. Leg straight on that side and slightly bent on the other for balance and to keep the head safer.

Her entire body ready to be attacked because the POS wanted her to feel that way.

Her facial expression offering up another form of self-defense. When you know you're dealing with a crazy fuck who looks to be about to cause you harm at any minute -and you put a fake smile on your face in hopes of reducing the aggression in your would be attacker.

That smile on her face, and his too, is from uncertainty and fear.

The POS with the wrench caused that.

That photo and video pisses me off to no great end. You should be able to take a walk with your family, or by yourself, without someone else causing you that kind of fear.

[MissMillie]

10. Why can't people be nice?

Or if you can't be nice, leave everybody else alone?

Takes no energy at all.

[yellowdogintexas]

11. drat. ad blocked out of the article

makes me so mad.

[NBachers]

13. Why is this hateful shit still with us?

[irisblue]

14. Taken by a photo journalist in Raleigh

Link to tweet

?s=20

[G_j]

29. What the hell is that

weapon on the guy’s back, a bazooka?

[tblue37]

15. When she asked him to back away from her, he said, "I can hit you from here"!! She is a

District Attorney. I think they should press charges against him. That's menacing and a clear threat. He would be easy to identify.

[Evolve Dammit]

17. Yes please. Arrest for threatening and whatever else is appropriate.

[Flaleftist]

18. So this "protestor" approaches him for a confrontation with that big ass wrench over his shoulder.

Does that not constitute a criminal charge of brandishing a weapon?

The authorities need to take this kind of shit more seriously. This is going to get worse and people are going to get hurt.

[Paladin]

19. Helpful (and very sad) reminder: It's 2020, not 1960. (nt)

[localroger]

20. Also, that wrench is a pretty crappy weapon

It's way too heavy and hard to hold. By the time you get it moving fast enough to hurt someone they've had time to duck out of the ay and changing its trajectory is almost impossible. I'm no warrior but if that fuckwit took a swing at me with it I'd have it out of his hands the first time he tried to use it, and probably just hurl it away. There's a reason cheating baseball players make their bats lighter.

[warmfeet]

22. Always fucking defer to the more powerful, as perceived in society at large.

Never fucking fight back. Respect your superiors.



Fuck that noise!

Put that pipe wrench where it belongs.

Up that fuckers asshole, sideways.

Sorry, but it will come down to that.

None of this is going to resolve in a peaceful, or easy manner.

[niyad]

23. I hope somebody doxxes that arrogant whit.e terrorist.

[Red Mountain]

24. This pisses me off

Raleigh police apparently decided to avoid the law.

Understandable, given this:

https://www.heraldsun.com/news/local/crime/article199048869.html

(open in private or incognito to read)

but they still should have had a more visible presence.






§ 14-277.2. Weapons at parades, etc., prohibited.

(a) It shall be unlawful for any person participating in, affiliated with, or present as a spectator at any parade, funeral procession, picket line, or demonstration upon any private health care facility or upon any public place owned or under the control of the State or any of its political subdivisions to willfully or intentionally possess or have immediate access to any dangerous weapon. Violation of this subsection shall be a Class 1 misdemeanor. It shall be presumed that any rifle or gun carried on a rack in a pickup truck at a holiday parade or in a funeral procession does not violate the terms of this act.

(b) For the purposes of this section the term "dangerous weapon" shall include those weapons specified in G.S. 14-269, 14-269.2, 14-284.1, or 14-288.8 or any other object capable of inflicting serious bodily injury or death when used as a weapon.

(c) The provisions of this section shall not apply to a person exempted by the provisions of G.S. 14-269(b) or to persons authorized by State or federal law to carry dangerous weapons in the performance of their duties or to any person who obtains a permit to carry a dangerous weapon at a parade, funeral procession, picket line, or demonstration from the sheriff or police chief, whichever is appropriate, of the locality where such parade, funeral procession, picket line, or demonstration is to take place.

(d) The provisions of this section shall not apply to concealed carry of a handgun at a parade or funeral procession by a person with a valid permit issued in accordance with Article 54B of this Chapter, with a permit considered valid under G.S. 14-415.24, or who is exempt from obtaining a permit pursuant to G.S. 14-415.25. This subsection shall not be construed to permit a person to carry a concealed handgun on any premises where the person in legal possession or control of the premises has posted a conspicuous notice prohibiting the carrying of a concealed handgun on the premises in accordance with G.S. 14-415.11(c). (1981, c. 684, s. 1; 1983, c. 633; 1993, c. 412, s. 2; c. 539, s. 174; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 24, s. 14(c); 1997-238, s. 4; 2013-369, s. 15.)




I guess they're waiting for one of these halfwits to kill somebody. Or something.

[barbtries]

25. these fucking idiots.

i wish the media would stop following them around and covering them as if they have some righteous cause. they're phony assholes with fake guns and a pipe wrench? WTF is bringing a pipe wrench to a demonstration have to do with any fucking thing?

goddamnit. I live here. I wanna go home to CA. There are so many people there that these freaks just can't get the kind of traction they manage here.

[Haggis for Breakfast]

26. Racism in a disease.

[marieo1]

27. What a shame

These protesters are insane. Why aren't they arrested? What kind of a state would allow someone to walk around threatening people like these people do. I have no respect for any of the southern states. If a black person gets killed they do absolutely nothing about it!!! I don't get it. Here is a man with his wife and child and they threaten him!!! All people should see the horror of this in a supposed civilized society. WHY AREN'T THESE VILLAINS ARRESTED?

[hadEnuf]

28. After reading the article I've come to the conclusion that these "protesters"

are nothing more than White Supremacists using the COVID-19 lock down as a bullshit excuse to go out and harass people publicly.

You don't bring guns to a stay at home order "protest" and you don't harass citizens on the streets over it either.


These punkasses are nothing more than armed thugs out terrorizing Americans and law enforcement needs to start clamping down on this shit NOW before it escalates further. RWNJ's aren't the only ones with guns and people are not going to continue be terrorized by these assholes.