Donald Trump Rally Erupts In Violence [Video]
Things got heated and violent at a Donald Trump rally in Birmingham, Alabama, on November 21. While the Republican presidential front-runner was stumping, a “Black Lives Matter” protester, identified by AL.com as Mercution Southall, interrupted his speech. The African American attendee began to chant “Black lives matter!” He then removed his sweatshirt to reveal a T-shirt with the same words printed on it, the Hill reports.
It’s reported that another person in attendance at the Donald Trump rally responded by shouting “All lives matter!” The protester was then “escorted” from the venue as Trump continued his stump speech. According to the Hill, witnesses reported that the altercation at the Trump rally involved a single black man and as many as six white men (Mercution Southall reported the number to be eight or nine) who reacted violently to his “Black Lives Matter” words and stance.
In the video, you see the African American “Black Lives Matter” protester on the ground, surrounded by men in suits (presumably Donald Trump’s security team). You can also clearly hear the sound of someone being struck or punched, while the white attendee in the blue and white shirt appears to throw punches at the protester.
While security attempts to pull the attacker off the protester and separate the two men, the attacker appears to continue to kick the subdued protester while he is being held to the ground.
In addition to Mercution Southall being forcibly removed from the Trump rally, two others were also asked to leave the event as a result of the violent scuffle.
Donald Trump addressed the chaotic situation from the stage, Yahoo News reports. The Donald requested the assistance of security from the safety of the podium. He spoke to security from his mic, telling them to “get him (the protester) the hell out of here.” Trump made no public request to have the half-dozen people pummeling the protester removed, although security apparently took it upon themselves not to allow some of them back into the rally.
Trump also attempted to use the violent treatment of Southall to his political advantage while taking a shot at his rival candidates. From his vantage point on the stage, Donald Trump made the prediction that his competition would use the altercation to accuse him of having a “picket” at his event.
“You have one guy over there shouting, we have thousands of people, and you’ll read about him tomorrow. They’ll say, ‘Oh, he had a picket!'”
While it was clear that Trump was annoyed at the distraction from his speech, his annoyance seemed to be limited to the protester and in no way directed at the Donald Trump supporters who turned a relatively peaceful protest into something violent.
“They said ‘Go home, n****r, and somebody punched me. I punched back. You know don’t do the turn-the-other-cheek (expletive).”
Southall stated that in addition to being repeatedly called a “n****r” and “monkey,” he was also told that his life didn’t matter by Trump supporters, some of whom were punching, kicking, and pushing him as they allegedly insulted him based on his race. Southall told interviewers that despite the seemingly unbelievable nature of the abuse he endured at the hands of Donald Trump supporters at the Birmingham rally, it’s nothing new. “When I wake up in the morning, I pretty much expect trouble,” he explained.
While being escorted out of the Donald Trump rally, Southall continued his non-violent protest by reportedly flipping off the crowd of Trump supporters on his way out the door.
The Black Lives Matter protester and activist also told AL.com that while no one was immediately charged or arrested for the violence he endured, he would support an investigation into and criminal charges against the violent attendees of the Birmingham Donald Trump rally.
Donald Trump campaign spokeswoman Hope Hicks said that the Trump campaign “does not condone this behavior.”
[Image Courtesy of @DCHomos/Twitter]
