Protesters for racial justice and counterprotesters from armed militia groups confront each other in Louisville ahead of the Kentucky Derby.
“We are prepared for others to express their First Amendment rights," Louisville Metro Police Department Deputy Chief LaVita Chavous said."We don’t know how large these crowds will be, but we do intend to not intervene with lawful protests that are not violent.”Some residents criticized law enforcement's preparation for the demonstrations, calling it excessive.
“To come out here and see armored vehicles, to see all the way around miles of fencing is ridiculous,” Pastor Timothy Findley Jr. said Friday."They view us as the enemy," she said. Far-right activists and self-described militia members and Black Lives Matter activists scuffle on the day of the Kentucky Derby horse race in Louisville, Kentucky, on Sept. 5, 2020.in Louisville for months as the state attorney general continues to investigate Taylor's death, and some residents have said that holding the Kentucky Derby is insensitive and a distraction from the ongoing demand for justice.
“Churchill Downs is committed to engaging in the hard conversations in our city, our sport and within our own organization," the statement read. “We are committed to taking real, concrete action to address institutional roadblocks to progress and playing our part in advancing the changes America so desperately needs.”
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said Wednesday,"Racial justice is a goal we all support. And we support First Amendment rights. We just have to balance the right to protest with our essential duty to preserve public safety.”Gabe Gutierrez is an NBC News Correspondent based in New York. He reports for all platforms of NBC News, including"TODAY," “NBC Nightly News," MSNBC and NBCNews.com.
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