Did you spend this weekend enjoying the last days of summer poolside? Well, then you probably missed some pertinent doses of populism. Here is your Weekend Protest Roundup Report, covering rallies to riots across the U.S.
Warning: some of the video content may be disturbing to viewers, please use discretion.
Modesto, CA:
On Saturday, Straight Pride, a right-wing group, planned an annual pro-life event in front of a Planned Parenthood clinic. This is the fourth consecutive year of the event. About 200 counter-protestors were reported to show up, and clashes between the groups broke out. Police declared it to be an unlawful assembly after a shrub was set on fire and some fights broke out. Four people were detained; one was released, and three were arrested for failure to disperse. Two of the arrested individuals were from the planned Straight Pride event and one individual was a counter-protestor. None of the demonstrators arrested were local to Stanislas County, The Modesto Bee reports,
Modesto Police Department spokesperson Sharon Bear could not confirm the order of events Saturday afternoon, but noted that the demonstrators were not part of the official straight pride rally, since that was planned for noon. Bear confirmed that a bush caught on fire, leading the police to call the event an “unlawful gathering” and clamp down. More than 25 police officers armed in tactical gear descended on the scene. Police fired pepper spray bullets into the rainbow-clad crowd of counter-protesters, injuring at least two people who were whisked away by volunteers. Police also used bean bag guns, which looked like orange shotguns.
Leftist counter protestors show up at a Straight Pride Event and clash with police. Antifa are terrorists! Modesto Ca. pic.twitter.com/7PqsSaFSlu
— Lexit (@LexitMovement1) August 27, 2022
Austin, TX:
Parents of the victims of the Uvalde school shooting protested outside of the Texas Governor’s Mansion Saturday morning beginning at 5:30 am. The Uvalde families rallied alongside March For Our Lives, a group co-founded by David Hogg, as part of a larger event organized at the Texas State Capitol later that day, starting at 11 am. Parents played recordings of their slain children on loudspeakers, while shouting the names of the children in between the recordings being played. According to Huffington Post, one participant yelled out,
“If we can’t sleep, neither can you!”
Outside of the Governor’s mansion in Austin – families of the 21 victims of Robb Elementary in Uvalde, TX play recordings of the children and teachers on a loudspeaker at 5:30am. They want to get @GovAbbott’s attention ahead of a protest later at the Capitol. @ABC #Uvalde365 pic.twitter.com/Qa0Nn9XvJ5
— Ismael Estrada (@ProducerIsh) August 27, 2022
The group is demanding that Texas Governor Greg Abbott call a special legislative session to pass a law raising the age to purchase semi-automatic weapons from 18 years old to 21 years old.
Note: Admittedly, this writer finds the details of their proposed law confusing, as some media outlets have reported it pertaining to “assault weapons,” which is an ill-defined term. The same outlets specify the AR-15 rifle specifically, which in a modern lexicon no longer represents one manufacturer’s model, but pertains to 100s of AR-15 “styled” models by various manufacturers. HuffPost reported the proposals aim for semi-automatic rifles. The demonization of the ever-popular AR-15 rifle is often at the forefront of gun-law demands, while no features of the design make it more dangerous or lethal than other firearms, specifically.
The legislative demands may not be legal, as KXAN News in Austin points out.
Just this week, a federal court in Fort Worth ruled Texas can’t ban 18 to 20-year-olds from carrying handguns, the Texas Tribune reported. In the state, handguns can only legally be purchased at 21. U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman wrote the Second Amendment does not specify an age limit and protects adults under 21 years old, the Texas Tribune wrote.
The Texas legislature meets bi-annually and both chambers are controlled by Republicans. In 2021, firearm carrying regulations were loosened.
Note: I don’t pretend to know every gun law in every locality. As always, please familiarize yourself with your local firearms laws and regulations.
Los Angeles, CA:
Angelino Heights residents gathered on Friday to protest the filming of the latest Fast and Furious movie, “Fast X” in their neighborhood. Residents claim that the movies encourage illegal street racing in the area, as this is not the first time scenes have been filmed there. Complaints included safety concerns, property damage, and tire marks left in front of an iconic neighborhood market by copycat street racers. The locals are asking at minimum that the film’s producers, NBC Universal, include a disclaimer discouraging fans from engaging in illegal street racing.
Fast and Furious ANGELINO HEIGHTS Protest https://t.co/UBbkJtdvZH pic.twitter.com/X7vAJB5urC
— /r/BikeLA redditors (@BikeLAredditors) August 25, 2022
In Burbank, at the Nickelodeon studio, former child actor on “Zoe 101,” Alexa Nikolas lead a protest against the exploitation of youth, including allegations of misconduct against Dan Schneider, the fomer Nickelodeon employee and creator of the “iCarly” series. Nickolas described her dynamic with Schneider as a traumatic experience, saying,
“He played a huge role in my personal childhood trauma. I did not feel safe around Dan Schneider while I was working at Nickelodeon. Actually, every time he came on set, my body got extremely tense, and later on in Season 2, he yelled at me, made me cry in a room, actually at Nickelodeon.”
‘Zoey 101’ star Alexa Nikolas protests outside Nickelodeon headquarters.
The signs include “Nickelodeon didn’t protect me,” “Eat predators” and “Sickelodeon.” pic.twitter.com/5M1M4SU1sh
— Pop Base (@PopBase) August 26, 2022
Schneider was not the only former employee Nikolas highlighted as being unsafe toward children, as the LA Times reports,
Nikolas also called out former Nickelodeon employees including Ezel Channel, John Kricfalusi and Jason Michael Handy, who have all been accused of sexual misconduct. Channel and Handy were both previously convicted of sex crimes.
She also criticized former Nickelodeon executives Sharon Lieblein and Cyma Zarghami and Fred Savage, who was a director on “Zoey 101.” In March, Savage was fired from ABC’s reboot of “The Wonder Years” following an investigation into misconduct allegations.
Nikolas is the founder of a sexual abuse survivor organization Eat Predators, and is among many former child stars revealing traumatic and disturbing experiences while working in the industry. A memoir released earlier this month by former iCarly star Jeanette McCurdy, “I’m Glad My Mom Died,” has sparked more child actors to speak out on their experiences. As my RedState colleague Levon Satamian previously reported, McCurdy claims in her book that Nickelodeon offered her $300,000 in “hush money” to not publicize her experiences while working with the network.
Atlanta, GA
Protestors gathered in front of Noah’s Ark Animal Sanctuary in Locust Grove on Friday, demanding new management after the state government took over the facility. The Georgia Department of Agriculture is working to contain an avian flu outbreak, after discovering over 700 deceased vultures on the sanctuary grounds. State officials have euthanized hundreds of birds in the last few days. Protestors blame Noah’s Ark President Shelley Lackley, claiming she didn’t immediately take precautions to mediate the outbreak and are calling on Lackley to resign her position. Henry County police guarded the facility’s entrance, controlling access to the grounds, as protesters lined the street.
These are some of the animals that have been humanely euthanized at Noah’s Ark Animal Sanctuary. Meet Fred and Wilma. Please send prayers as Georgia continues to fight spread of H5N1 Avian Influenza virus! pic.twitter.com/RAEOTQgQAE
— Emanuel Jones (@emanueldjones) August 25, 2022
Greensboro, NC
After a Sunday night, officer-involved shooting resulting in the death of a 17-year-old suspect Nasanto “Duke” Crenshaw, a march was organized in downtown Greensboro. The incident stemmed from an August 21st traffic stop, where police identified the vehicle as stolen. The vehicle drove away from the traffic stop as an officer approached. The officer tried to stop the vehicle again, with several people exiting and fleeing. The vehicle then hit the police car and accelerated. The officer fired, and the suspect was pronounced dead at the scene.
Standard procedure investigations into the incident are being conducted by the State Bureau of Investigation and Greensboro Police Department’s Professional Standards Division to verify all policies were followed. The officer has been placed on administrative duty, a regular practice for use of force incidents.
As seen in the video below, Greensboro had violent clashes during the summer of 2020 ,when BLM-styled protests were held.
The ran someone over at the Greensboro Protest pic.twitter.com/nbWFwKuaey
— Tia (@tiabiaaa_) May 31, 2020
Finally, I’ve made one selection from abroad. Plenty of populist movements are occurring all over the world about economic and energy issues. Protests about inflation rates have taken place in Haiti, South Africa, and Argentina, and refusals to pay high utility costs are happening in the UK and Pakistan. Continued power outage blackouts have led to violent clashes between police and protestors in Puerto Rico.
But, did you know that earlier in August, thousands of South Koreans protested US Military activities in Seoul?
Seoul, South Korea
South Korea hosts 28,500 American troops and the Pentagon’s largest military base outside of North America. Protestors were organized by S. Korea’s second-largest trade union, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, in opposition to a large-scale military exercise. The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise is currently being conducted jointly between the US and S. Korean governments and will continue through September 1.
Protestors demanded dissolution of military alliances between the nations, a withdrawal of all American forces and “peace on the Korean Peninsula, and inter-Korean reconciliation and cooperation.”
Video and photo from Chinese state supported media outlet CGTN.
