Protesters march in Midtown, Downtown Memphis
Micaela A Watts, Desiree Stennett, Dima Amro, Ted Evanoff and John Beifuss
Two groups of Memphis protesters numbering in the hundreds maneuvered through Midtown and Downtown on Friday, closing major intersections and thoroughfares.
The dual marches remained peaceful with police officers blocking traffic but keeping their distance from the demonstrators, some of whom are calling for a significant defunding of the Memphis Police Department.
From Overton Square to Cooper-young, protesters shut down several intersections
Several dozen demonstrators gathered near Saltwater Crab on Madison Avenue and Diana Street Friday around 6:30 p.m. for the beginning of a march that would extend to the Cooper-young neighborhood.
The masked group, chanting "Defund the police" began marching east on Madison Avenue around 6:30 p.m. before heading south on Cooper Street. The route connected two of Memphis' most popular entertainment destinations, dotted with multiple bars and eateries.
Like many demonstrations over the course of the last 10 days, the protest started with 50-60 individuals, and steadily drew more attendees as the night progressed.
Jordan Dodson, 21, led the march with chants, orations, and recitations of names of black Americans killed by police forces across the country.
With growing numbers, the demonstration blocked off six lanes of traffic along East Parkway shortly after 7 p.m. Organizers of the demonstration said the East Parkway would be the final leg of the march initially, but that soon changed as the demonstration reversed course, and headed north along Cooper Street.
During the stop at East Parkway and Young Avenue, protesters began to call attention to one of the nation's historic neighborhoods intentionally designed as a community for black Memphians, Orange Mound, with chants demanding more funding to the area.
In September of 2019, Shelby County Property Assessor Melvin Burgess issued a dire warning about the declining residential values in the area, and said property valued have declined by as much as 26 percent over the last decade.
While East Parkway remained closed, police mostly kept their distance from the protesters, who continued with rally cries of "Defund the police".
“When I say defund the police, I wonder why police from Collierville are policing Orange Mound,” Dodson said into a megaphone, likely referring to officers policing majority-black communities they do not live in.
In December of 2019, the Memphis City Council voted to let Memphis residents decide on election Day 2020 whether or not Memphis police officers and firefighters should live within Memphis city limits.
Driver taken into custody after protester said she was struck
Amid the Midtown area demonstration, one male was taken into custody by law enforcement after an incident in which a protester was struck by a vehicle.
The person hit, 22-year-old Erin
Dempsey, was in the demonstration as a safety marshal — someone who keeps an eye on the crowd and coordinates any action needed for safety.
After a black vehicle hit Dempsey, protesters surrounded the truck until police were able to respond to the scene.
After roughly 20 minutes, police handcuffed the driver and took him into custody.
Memphis police spokesperson Louis Brownlee confirmed the driver of the black vehicle was detained, and then released after being issued a citation.
Within an hour of the first incident, Shelby County Commissioner Tami Sawyer tweeted that another incident involving a car intentionally driving into protesters occurred. The driver, Sawyer said, was let go.
By 9 p.m. protesters returned to the intersection of Cooper Street and Union Avenue, decrying the city-wide curfew of 10 p.m. with chants of, "Take down the curfew!"
Shortly after, dinner arrived to the protesters on Union Avenue in the form of 30 pizzas, donated by Little Caesar's Pizza. At least a dozen Memphis police squad cars remained around the protesters.
The demonstration concluded shortly before the 10 p.m. curfew took effect in Memphis.
Dodson, the leader of the demonstration who cited Malcolm X, Angela Davis, and Zora Neal Hurston as their favorite authors said the march was, "better than I could have ever imagined, and said more protesters showed up than expected.
More than 100 start march at National Civil Rights Museum
For the ninth consecutive night, demonstrates also gathered in Downtown Memphis.
Led by Frank Gottie and L.J. Abraham, more than 100 protesters began the night's demonstration at the National Civil Rights Museum. Nightly marches in the area have all included stops along key landmarks of the Civil Rights Movement.
Abraham reminded the crowd that, Breonna Taylor would have turned 27 today. Taylor was killed by Louisville police on March 13, when officers stormed into her house to serve a noknock warrant.
As the crowd moved north on South Main Street in Downtown, chants of "Hey hey, ho ho, those racist cops have got to go" were called out.
Outside the Shelby County Circuit Court building, which is close to the jail and criminal court system at 201 Poplar, Abraham said, "This is where our black men and women come to get convicted everyday."
Abraham, who only recently begun leading demonstrations through Memphis, has been intentional about where demonstrations stop, selecting institutions that are enmeshed in Shelby
County's judicial process such as courthouses, and the jail at 201 Poplar.
After passing those courthouses and a blocked off City Hall, the procession moved north along Poplar Avenue, towards Danny Thomas Boulevard.
After less than 30 minutes of closing down the intersection, the demonstration began to move back towards NCRM.
No interactions between police and demonstrates were immediately seen, but multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the demonstration.
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