Raleigh police declare “protesting is a non-essential activity”, arrest “ReopenNC” protesters

by The Right Scoop

Yesterday police in Raleigh, NC declared that “protesting is a non-essential activity” and forced “ReopenNC” protesters, who police said were in violation of the governor’s executive order, to disperse or face arrest. At least one protester was arrested:

Here’s more:

DC EXAMINER – The Raleigh Police Department in North Carolina is facing blowback after categorizing protesting as a “non-essential activity.”

The police department is facing scrutiny after arresting protesters in downtown Raleigh on Tuesday, asserting that such activity is in violation of the governor’s executive order limiting outdoor activities amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“What part of the governor’s order was violated here?” one social media user asked.

“Protesting is a non-essential activity,” the police department responded.

According to local media, protesters called for the reopening of businesses, holding signs that said “Reopen NC,” “Freedom is not free,” and “#ReopenNC #Tyranny.”

Here’s that tweet from @raleighpolice:

You see, it wasn’t that they were protesting too close together. It wasn’t that they were risking the spread of the coronavirus. It was that they were doing something that was deemed ‘non-essential’, which turned out to be exercising their first amendment rights.

As DC Examiner points out, this didn’t go over well with people on social media:

It was reported that the protesters that did disperse actually got in their cars and started honking:


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