BLOOMINGTON, MN – The group “Black Lives Matter Minneapolis” could be facing charges for disrupting commerce and shopping at the Mall of America after a protest they arranged there last weekend.
According to reports out of the Twin Cities, Bloomington City Attorney Sandra Johnson is working on filing criminal charges against the group. She is working with mall officials to determine losses to stores that were incurred due to the protests, which took place at the mall’s rotunda.
“The main perpetrators are those who continued on their Facebook site to invite people illegally to the Mall of America,” Johnson told WCCO in Minneapolis. The financial losses could be “staggering”.
3000 community members including families, clergy, and youth gathered Saturday at the Mall of America rotunda to sing songs and chant demanding an end to police brutality and the racial inequities people of color face. Dozens of arrests were made.
“Today’s protest was our biggest success yet,” said Mica Grimm, an organizer with Black Lives Matter Minneapolis. “Thousands of people stood together, refused to be intimidated, and disrupted business as usual on the busiest shopping day of the year at the biggest mall in the country. As long as innocent Black and brown lives are disrupted by police without consequence, we cannot go about business as usual.”
Police and security decided to shut down stores and entrances across the entire mall for hours in response, and as the singing ended and participants began to exit, police in full riot gear confronted the crowd.
In response to the possibility of charges, Black Lives Matter Minneapolis released the following statement Tuesday, December 23:
The Mall of America and Bloomington Police decided to shut down stores during a peaceful gathering on Saturday where 3000 community members sang carols and chants dedicated to black youth slain by the police.
City of Bloomington attorney Sandra Johnson says she will seek restitution for “loss of profits” and police resources from young people of color she claims to identify as organizers. These carols honoring Black youths Tamir Rice and Mike Brown should have been welcomed with same the warmth and spirit of generosity as the 7,000+ gathering to sing in honor of a young white man who lost his life to cancer. Instead Saturday’s group was met with riot gear.
As a community, we are saddened by Mall of America and attorney Johnson’s decision to misdirect public resources to protect corporate profits instead of supporting justice for Black people at this critical time in our nation’s history.
It’s clear that the Bloomington City government, at the behest of one of the largest centers of commerce in the country, hopes to set a precedent that will stifle dissent and instill fear into young people of color and allies who refuse to watch their brothers and sisters get gunned down in the streets with no consequences.
We also must be clear: #BlackXmas was not organized by any individual or small group, but was a collective response and effort by the 3,000 community members and families in attendance who can no longer remain silent to the injustices perpetrated upon their communities.
The greatest trick that Satin (the devil) every pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.
We are living in a dark period.
Satin IS VERY active.
In St. Louis today another black 18 year old man is dead after pulling a gun on a policeman.
What we have here is Anarchy.
We have a state of disorder due to the nonrecognition of authority.
Wake up America!!!
Pulling a gun on a police officer is an invitation to be killed. I have no problem with police shooting and killing citizens who brandish firearms in a threatening manner. My beef is with cops who shoot unarmed or lightly armed civilians using “Center Mass” shooting theory; when deploying Tazers, chemical deterrents, or shooting appendages would be sufficient. Unloading 14 bullets into a homeless man’s chest, neck, head, or to a disturbed man waving a knife is murder.
When you think about it “Black Life Matters” sends a huge message: White Life Doesn’t Matter.
Before you protest something you should have something to bitch about. In this case these stupid ass protestors don’t have a cause.
Just because the police are apprehending criminals that happen to be black and white don’t constitute “racism”.
What a bunch of numbskulls. They are protesting a lie!
Thank you watchdog, I wanted to say that as well but ran out of text in my post. Good job.
They should be charged, big time, then banned from the mall. I wonder how they would like it if a mob of non afro americans went into their neighborhood and caused a scene like that.
These people were warned over and over again, if charges are not made, it will set a president that it is ok to shut down a private business by your actions without consequences. This group needs to be hammered hard, period.
Mica Grimm cost a lot of private business owners,(some black owners as well,) a way to feed their families for the year. He stated he is sending a message to corporate America by doing this but he is a dunce. These shop owners are private businesses.
I do not feel sorry for these people. They were told over and over again that the Mall was private property and to take their demonstration elsewhere. They should be held accountable for their actions and for any money lost by the mall or the businesses there.
Black lives do matter. Every color of person matters. I found this video and think it might answer some questions. I’m not a fan of O’Reilly, but its still a good message.
http://www.cnsnews.com/video/national/oreilly-americas-race-problem
He hit the nail, square on the head. Sharpton, Jackson, Obama, are you listening.
Evidently, the afro american that was just shot in missouri didn’t take time to watch this video, or even care too.
Thanks for posting that link Buzz. O’Reilly hit it on the head.