“You don’t want protests turning into riots? Stop letting arrests turn into murder,” says a protestor with a megaphone, as unrest in downtown Madison begins to wrap up around 2am Tuesday morning.
Protesters spent Monday evening and Tuesday morning marching in civil unrest in Madison, protesting the Kenosha Police Department officer’s shooting of a Black man in Kenosha on Sunday.
Jacob Blake, who was shot by a police officer approximately seven times in the back at close range as he was entering his SUV, is receiving medical treatment at Froedtert Hospital. Family attorney Benjamin Crump, who represented the family of George Floyd, said Tuesday afternoon Blake is now paralyzed from the waist down and is still fighting for his life.
In Madison…
As Kenosha was rocked by protest, fires, looting and property damage, so too was Madison, as protesters gathered downtown on a gusty night. On State Street, East Washington, and the Capitol Square, protesters lit dumpsters on fire, smashed windows, and looted businesses. Some protesters argued with those smashing windows, while others cheered it on. Still others tried to persuade the crowd from breaking the windows of businesses who had helped distribute aid during past protests.
The smell of alcohol from smashed liquor bottles was apparent on state State Street, after protesters broke into and looted from Badger Liquor. On the Capitol Square near King Street, numerous businesses were shattered, including The Rigby Bar, Colectivo, Graze, and Park Bank.
Some businesses owners affected demonstrated support for the BLM movement on Tuesday morning, saying their windows could be replaced, but Black lives could not. A Facebook post from Graze Madison on Tuesday morning read, “To be honest, what’s happening to black people in this country is bullshit. To live your life in fear of of police killing you just for being black is just plain bullshit. I’d rather wake up see every window in this city broken than wake up to another video of an unarmed black man or woman being shot, strangled, kneeled on, or killed by police ever again.”
Francesca Hong, who co-owns Morris Ramen on King Street and is the Democratic candidate for Assembly in a downtown district that almost always votes blue, tweeted a response to Republican legislator Jim Steineke, of Kaukauna, saying “Was out til 5am shoveling glass with my neighbors. We work together to and support one another. We understand this is bigger than our businesses.”
Chemical weapons
Shot after shot of tear gas on Blair St and East Wash, after a Molotov cocktail is thrown at the Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce. pic.twitter.com/68v128zSRF
— chali (@chalipittman) August 25, 2020
Plumes of pepper spray and tear gas deployed by police rolled out on protesters, beginning on East Washington Avenue after molotov cocktails were thrown at the Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce building. Graffiti now reads on the side of the building, “You have stolen more than we could ever loot.”
As protesters retreated from the police line, spluttering from tear gas, a Vietnam veteran, perplexed by the flaming garbage cans in front of him, asked a young protester, “Why do you need to burn someone’s trash?”
Exchange between protestors and an older man, after garbage bins are set on fire with a line of police down a block.
He’s a Vietnam Vet, and perplexed— “When you protest, you protest. But you don’t set this on fire.” pic.twitter.com/qlIQFLWYfM
— chali (@chalipittman) August 25, 2020
Police also deployed chemical weapons after businesses near the intersection of East Main Street, King Street, and Pinckney Street were broken and looted. Protesters assembled fences, intended for the City’s “Streatery” program, as barriers to police cars. Across the street, on the Capitol lawn, protesters traded recently stolen wares.
In a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Madison Fire Chief Stephen Davis said in at least one instance, the Fire Department had requested the use of pepper spray and tear on protesters, so the Fire Department could immediately respond to a building with gasoline poured in it.
“Had that reached an ignition source, it would have exploded, for lack of a better term,” said the Fire Chief.
Police fire tear gas and pepper spray after businesses on E Main, Pinckney, and King are smashed and looted. pic.twitter.com/YoL7MhcTch
— chali (@chalipittman) August 25, 2020
In the same press conference, Madison Police Chief Victor Wahl said “We remain committed to protecting First Amendment rights. We’ve been doing that every day for about three months. But, property damage, starting fires, violence, and things that put our community at risk are not things we are going to condone, and we will intervene.”
Arrests
“This is not a time to be a savior, it is a time to be an integral part of your community. If they pick us all off today, who will stand tomorrow?” a man with a megaphone says to the crowd, around 2am on the top of State Street, after giving tips and resources for getting home safely. Protesters have consistently expressed fear of being picked up by police after being separated the group.
As the crowd dispersed, police reportedly arrested Jordan King, a consistent organizer of Black Lives Matter protests and best friend of Tony Robinson, who was killed five years ago after being shot by Madison Police Officer Matt Kenny, who is still on the force. Wisconsin Watch reporter Will Cioci, who witnessed the arrest, tweeted that King’s arrest appeared targeted and premeditated, and occurred in under 90 seconds.
The Madison Police Department reportedly made six total arrests during the night.
Response from elected officials
Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway condemned the unrest in a statement released on Tuesday morning, writing “We draw the line on arson, theft, and criminal damage to property that puts people’s lives in danger. This behavior doesn’t build a movement — it undercuts the movement, and in Madison it divides a community that largely supports change.”
Mayor Rhodes-Conway is facing significant criticism from two sides: from protest leaders, who say she has been overly supportive of police, and from members of a conservative-led recall effort, who say she has been overly receptive to protesters.
Meanwhile, Governor Evers delivered a similar statement supporting peaceful protests but denouncing violence, tweeting “We cannot allow the cycle of systemic racism and injustice to continue. We also cannot continue going down this path of damage and destruction.” The Governor has declared a state of emergency in Wisconsin, and authorized deploying members of the Wisconsin National Guard to Kenosha County to protect property.
Meanwhile, Republican state legislators delivered a now-familiar attack on the Governor for the violence, and in particular, destruction of windows to their State Capitol offices. Senator Chris Kapenga, a Republican from Delafield, wrote Tuesday that he’s increasingly frustrated that “for the second time this summer, my Capitol office was vandalized by a violent mob of rioters.”
The Governor has called the legislature into a special session next Monday to take up a package of police reform bills that were introduced two months ago.
