BLM Agitators Attack and Chase #WalkAway Members at 'Rescue America' Rally in Texas
Some headline writers apparently have an absolute lack of self-awareness right now, because The Dallas Morning News actually had a story Saturday titled “President Trump shares video on Twitter of scuffle at mostly peaceful Dallas WalkAway rally.”
I figured we would find a new two-word apologia for left-wing protest hijinks after CNN’s “fiery but mostly peaceful protests” debacle. Put it away. Come up with something more clunky but that doesn’t draw the reader toward that association. “Largely calm.” “Generally placid.” “Principally tranquil.” Give “mostly peaceful” a decommissioning ceremony and a gold watch. It’s done everyone well.
This latest headline came after the #WalkAway campaign held an event in Dallas. It was, yes, mostly peaceful until a local activist got involved with security at the event.
The #WalkAway group, which is comprised of onetime Democrats who’ve left the party to become Republicans and was founded by conservative activist Brandon Straka, organized the “Rescue America” rally Saturday.
#WalkAway Rescue America DALLAS was a HUGE hit today!!!! Thank you, Texas, for showing up to #RescueAmerica‼️#RescueDallas@realDonaldTrump @IngrahamAngle @FoxNews @PeteHegseth @foxandfriends @BlazeTV @OANN @EmilyRoseFinn @STEPHMHAMILL @JackPosobiec @newsmax @DanCrenshawTX @CNN pic.twitter.com/RxifDGKYVL
— Brandon Straka (@BrandonStraka) September 5, 2020
There had been confrontations between #WalkAway members and Black Lives Matter supporters, The Morning News reported, but these were mostly on the fringes of the crowd, where the outlet said BLM activists were “engaging in civil, if heated, discussions with rally attendees.”
Michelle Bullard of the Next Generation Action Network claimed that at some point, a #WalkAway participant shoved a child. We have no footage of this or corroboration as of Monday morning.
Another narrative from The Morning News story was that the Black Lives Matter activists were addressed directly from across the street by the speaker, black conservative author Shemeka Michelle. At this point, the activists decided to approach the rally — something that seems like an actually documented impetus.
We do have some video of what happened next, which involved the Next Generation Action Network’s Dominique Alexander.
What we can tell from looking at it is that he was trying to engage with a man in an American flag shirt in a manner that, if perhaps not civil, was certainly heated.
Someone came between them, identified by Straka as his security man.
WARNING: The following video contains graphic language that some viewers will find offensive.
FOLLOWERS I NEED YOUR HELP!!!
BLM agitator infiltrated stage area of today’s rally then put his fist into security’s neck when being removed. @DallasPD ARRESTED THE SECURITY AGENT!! He’s been held for over 4 hours! Dallas PD not releasing security agent.
RT &DEMAND his release!! pic.twitter.com/ghMwZa4lFi— Brandon Straka (@BrandonStraka) September 5, 2020
Straka said Alexander was trying to infiltrate the stage when security stopped him.
Alexander continued off-stage. Scuffles broke out on the fringes. Meanwhile, Straka reported that both his security man and Alexander were picked up by the Dallas Police Department.
The Morning News seemed primarily concerned with Alexander’s arrest; Straka said he was taken in for the attack, although Dallas officials said his arrest had to deal with outstanding traffic warrants between 2015 and 2018.
He was also issued a Class C misdemeanor citation in connection with Saturday’s incident; however, it carries no jail time and under $500 in fines.
A longer video shows the incident in more detail.
Violence breaks out in Dallas between Trump supporters holding a rally and Black Lives Matter counter protestors. Next Generation Action Network provided the video to @WFAA . The man wrestled to the ground is the group’s founder Dominique Alexander. pic.twitter.com/SYZvAvwLXB
— Eric Alvarez (@EricWFAA) September 5, 2020
For the most part, tensions de-escalated after this — but they were fueled up again after Straka and some others with #WalkAway went to the Dallas Police Department headquarters, where Alexander’s supporters had already set up camp and demanded his release.
Protestors demanding the release of Dominique Alexander are now blocking the intersection in front of Dallas Police Headquarters. @wfaa pic.twitter.com/QiS70b2X8c
— Eric Alvarez (@EricWFAA) September 5, 2020
Straka arrived to check on his security man, and things soured quickly.
“This was the most terrifying moment of my life,” he said on Twitter. “My team &I went to the police to check on detained security agent. 30-40 BLM began throwing bottles at us & chasing us. They stole my employee’s phone &smashed it. We had to run for 4-5 blocks.”
This was the most terrifying moment of my life. My team &I went to the police to check on detained security agent. 30-40 BLM began throwing bottles at us & chasing us. They stole my employee’s phone &smashed it. We had to run for 4-5 blocks. All Dallas news stations were there. pic.twitter.com/84ZWXtPo93
— Brandon Straka (@BrandonStraka) September 6, 2020
#WalkAway member Karlyn Borysenko, who documented it on her phone, told Fox News that the Black Lives Matter protesters were on them “almost immediately” after they arrived there later on Saturday.
“We didn’t even say anything to them,” she said.
“We were minding our own business. … They immediately started screaming at us, throwing things at us and then chased us down the street to where there was a group of cops that were at the end of the street that we were trying to get to protect us,” Borysenko said.
“We committed the crime of standing on the street,” she said. “If it could happen to us, it could literally happen to anyone. They didn’t know who we were from anyone else. And they just knew that they had seen us probably at the rally earlier in the day. And they knew that we disagreed with them. And that was the only crime we committed.”
If #WalkAway’s security man was taken into custody, this wasn’t something that was widely reported. Meanwhile, Alexander’s arrest isn’t necessarily news, either; he’s currently facing a pending felony family violence charge in Dallas County and a pending theft case against him in Denton County. In 2011, he pleaded guilty to injury to a child.
None of that, of course, illustrates who was right and who was wrong in the original scuffle.
There’s no question, however, who was in the wrong when Black Lives Matter demonstrators were pursuing Brandon Straka and other #WalkAway individuals down the street in a threatening fashion, employing the base tactics of the mob.
“Mostly peaceful” that decidedly wasn’t.
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