Demonstration Against Recent Arrests In Monroe Park; District 5 Windows Smashed & Gun Shots Fired
Crowds of demonstrators formed once more outside Monroe Park following a night of arrests inside the park property after police enforced park closing ordinances. This time demonstrators determined to defy law enforcement gathered on the steps of the Catholic Cathedral of the Sacred Heart believing police would not have legal mechanisms to disperse them there.
Police monitored the gathering crowds and unlike the previous night did not make any arrests during the organizational phase of the gathering.
Around 9:40 PM the crowd of several dozen departed the Cathedral and marched through several streets of the VCU campus before heading west on Main Street. According to police and eye witness reports the rowdy crowd did perform some acts of vandalism on campus and disrupted residents with lights shined into their windows.
Around 10:15 PM the westbound crowd arrived on the 1900 block of West Main Street at the location where just days before police had halted demonstrators from moving further west. Vandals had unfinished business to attend to on this block as several individuals had intended to cause damage to the District 5 restaurant but were prevented by the law enforcement intervention.
Why District 5?
District 5 has been a repeated target of vandals over the summer as many feel the popular restaurant’s dress code policies and enforcement are racially discriminatory. Social media posts over the years have documented many cases of these alleged incidents and so some demonstrators have sought retribution against D5’s windows for these perceived unfair policies.
Further escalating tensions the restaurant released a statement on Facebook responding to a shooting at the establishment the prior week. In the post the restaurant addressed the shooting but in the same paragraph suggested it was the result of not enforcing their dress code policies.
With no immediate police presence crowds swarmed around District 5 and provided cover for vandals attacking the windows of the business.
Some individuals of alleged affiliation with a BLM757 group became hostile with the vandals and displayed weapons while verbally discouraging them from property destruction. During this escalation a gun was discharged in the air and the crowd terminated their vandalism of the restaurant.
After accomplishing their objectives of smashing up the restaurant the crowd turned around and returned to the VCU campus and ultimately the steps of the cathedral. Shortly after 11 PM the demonstrators dispersed without further incident.
Read More:
Moderate Damage Event: Disruptions & Light Vandalism