Hot words but no violence at rally in Tulsa
TULSA, Okla. — President Donald Trump took the stage Saturday night for his first political rally since the coronavirus outbreak, facing a smaller crowd than expected. Protesters gathered on downtown streets to denounce the president’s handling of the policing and public health crises roiling the country.
The Trump campaign has repeatedly touted figures suggesting as many as 1 million people signed up for the event. But the number of Trump supporters who showed up fell far short of that. The crowd did not fill the 19,000-seat BOK Center venue, with swaths of upper-level seating empty. The outdoor overflow area remained largely empty, and both Trump and Vice President Mike Pence canceled plans for speeches there.
“Trump blamed the news media and protesters for the turnout: “I’ve been watching the fake news for weeks now, and everything is negative — don’t go, don’t come, don’t do anything,” he said during his speech.
But police on site said the entrance was blocked only briefly, and no one was denied entry.
In the hours before and after the rally, there was rage and bitterness on display in the streets of Tulsa, as polarized Americans shouted at each other about race and the coronavirus.
As the sun set, downtown Tulsa was largely closed for business, with blocks of shuttered restaurants, bars and storefronts, many boarded up. Large crowds of protesters marched around the arena as Trump spoke inside, monitored by police.
It was a day of finger-pointing and bullhorn-taunting, faceto-face screaming matches and boiling tempers under the hot Tulsa sun. Hundreds of supporters and critics filled downtown in anticipation of the president’s first political rally since the pandemic brought much of public life to a standstill in March.
By the time Trump took the stage Saturday evening, there had been a series of tense verbal confrontations outside but no reports of violence. Civilians carrying military-style rifles and pistols wandered amid the crowds, claiming they wanted to keep people safe, while Tulsa police and National Guard troops restrained and separated opposing sides.
Fears that the rally could accelerate the spread of the virus were underscored when six members of Trump’s campaign advance team tested positive. The campaign said the infected staff members were quarantined.
Upon entering the rally grounds, attendees were handed blue face coverings and directed through a maze of metal fencing, which led to a touchless temperature screening conducted by volunteers in purple smocks.
The elaborate procedure stood in contrast to the chaotic scenes unfolding downtown. Arguments erupted between protesters and the president’s supporters at street corners near the arena, where they traded cries of “Black lives matter!” and “All lives matter!”
Tulsa police sought to separate the groups and directed people out of the streets.