A video that went viral over the weekend depicts a mob of Black Lives Matter protesters in Texas illegally blocking traffic. Meanwhile, a police officer stood by while a man from one of the gridlocked vehicles asked him to take action.
Last week an angry driver confronted the group of #BLM protesters who shut down the road with impunity in Plano, Texas. pic.twitter.com/kf7PKWvJbk
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) May 8, 2021
The encounter in Plano, Texas, which lies mostly in Collin County, occurred last Sunday when BLM activists protested following the death of black male Marvin Scott in police custody on March 14. While lawful protesting is constitutional and the BLM group received permission for its initial protest, attendees blocked traffic and did not stand in the area police designated as suitable.
In the footage, the man from the held-up vehicle can be seen yelling to police, “You’re the goddamn cop! Get these f-cking people out the way! Get them out of here! They can’t be out here in the middle of the road!” The police officer declined to instruct the activists to disperse or relocate, and the man subsequently confronted the protesters himself.
Around the video’s 30-second mark, one person can be seen pointing an object resembling a handgun at the man. Eventually, the police officer blocked off the altercation, but activists continued to block cars from moving while the officer stood by.
Zach Barrett, president of the Collin County Conservative Republicans, told The Federalist, “If you’re blocking traffic, you’re no longer really protesting to me. You’re causing problems to pursue. It needs to be dealt with accordingly.” Meanwhile, Collin County Judge Chris Hill said the protesters’ activity was “illegal.”
The Plano Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment by The Federalist.
