RECEIVED THERE TO TRY AND BREAK
THIS SITUATION WE WATCH ANOTHER
TEAR GAS CANISTER EXPLODING
THERE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE
STREET WE DO WANT TO GO LIVE TO
OUR REPORTER. WHO HAS LED OUR
COVERAGE ON THIS FROM THE FIELD
JACQUELINE FRANCIS YOU WATCH
THIS UNFOLD ALL EVENING LONG
FROM SIX O'CLOCK IN THE EVENING
WHERE THEY SEEMED LIKE IT WOULD
BE SOMETHING OF A PROTEST LIKE
YOU MAY HAVE COVERED BEFORE TO
SOMETHING LIKE NONE. OF US HAVE
SEEN BEFORE HERE IN GRAND
RAPIDS YEAH LEON THIS IS.
JUST NOT ANYTHING THAT WE
WERE EXPECTING WHEN WE STARTED
IT WAS SO PEACEFUL THERE WAS A
LOT. OF UNITY LIKE YOU GUYS
HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT
THROUGHOUT OUR COVERAGE JUST IN
THIS HOUR BUT DEFINITELY.
I WOULD SAY IT.
WAS ALMOST LIKE EVERY HALF
AN HOUR THINGS BEGAN TO
ESCALATE MORE AND MORE UNTIL
REALLY IT JUST BROKE OUT INTO
COMPLETE COMPLETE VIOLENCE SO
AS YOU CAN SEE WE'VE BEEN TEAR
GASSED QUITE A FEW TIMES.
SOMETIMES IT WAS IN THE MIDDLE
OF THE MOST THE EPICENTER OF
WHERE PEOPLE WERE BREAKING OUT
WINDOWS AND. THERE WERE FIRES
BUT THIS LAST TIME EVEN THOUGH
THE CROWD ISN'T AS RAMBUNCTIOUS
AS IT WAS OR AS AS COMPACT.
EITHER. STILL A OF TEAR GAS
IN THE CENTER OF DOWNTOWN ON
AND THAT IT SEEMS LIKE AS THEY
CONTINUE TO DO THAT MORE PEOPLE
ARE LEAVING BUT LIKE YOU WERE
SAYING JUST TO KIND. OF RECAP
TONIGHT. IT STARTED WITH THAT
SILENT MARCH THAT WAS JUST
PEACEFUL AND THEN. THAT'S WHEN
PROTESTERS WENT TO GRAND RAPIDS.
THEY HAD OFFICERS WITH THEIR
BICYCLES GUARDING THE FRONT
DOOR WELL SOON. AFTER THAT THE
PROTESTERS MOVED TO THE BACK OF
THE BUILDING THE BACK OF G R P
IS THEIR STATION THERE OF A
FULTON AND THAT'S WHEN THEY
BEGAN TO AGAINST THE DOOR.
THAT'S WHEN WE ALSO STARTED
SEEING THE SWAT GEAR WORN ON
AND THEN BUT FROM.
THERE THAT'S WHEN THE
VANDALISM HOURS PEOPLE.
JUST USING GRAFFITI AND
WRITING THINGS ON ITS KIND OF
STARTED BY THEY WERE WRITING
GRAFFITI ON THE POLICE STATION
BUILDING AND THEN IT WENT TODO.
. WE WENT TO BREAKING. THEY
WERE.
TAKING ON ROAD SIGNS AND
THEN. WHEN THINGS REALLY GOT
CRAZY THAT'S WHEN THEY SMASH IN
THAT BUSINESS WINDOW ON DAY
WERE PEOPLE WERE RUNNING INTO
THIS STORE THAT WAS ON DIVISION
AND FULTON AND STEALING THINGS
IN A TRASH CAN WAS SET ON FIRE.
AND THAT'S WHEN MSP MICHIGAN
STATE POLICE GOT ON THE SCENE
MORE LAW ENFORCEMENT. THEY MADE
THEIR PRESENCE. REALLY KNOWN AT
THAT POINT WHERE KIND OF
EARLIER IN THE DAY THEY WEREN'T
AS THEY DIDN'T HAVE AS MANY
BOOTS ON THE GROUND BUT ONCE
THOSE WINDOWS WERE SHATTERED
AND.
. THERE WAS THAT FIRE ON THE
TRASH. CAN WE? BEGAN SEEING
POLICE PROTESTERS AT FIRST WERE
NOT AT ALL DETERRED BY THEM.
THEY WENT RIGHT UP TO THE
POLICE OFFICERS AS THEY HAD
LIKE KIND OF BARRICADED
SHOULDER TO SHOULDER STANDING
THERE WE HAVE SEEN PEOPLE THROW
THINGS AT POLICE OFFICERS
YELLING AND KIND OF TRYING TO
ANTAGONIZE THEM POSSIBLY FOR
THE MOST PART POLICE OFFICERS
HAVE SHOWN NO EMOTION BUT OF
COURSE AT SOME POINT. WE DID.
THAT'S. WHEN TEAR GAS BEGAN TO
HAPPEN AND THAT'S WHEN YOU SAW
CROWDS OF PEOPLE RUNNING EVERY
WHICH WAY.
TRYING TO RECOVER UM AND
WELL THAT MAY HAVE DETERRED
SOME I.
WOULD SAY IT KIND OF JUST
ONCE THE TEAR GAS STARTED
PEOPLE WOULD FIND A NEW SPOT.
DONE THAT'S WHEN WE SAW A SIDE
OF A BUILDING CATCH FIRED FOR A
LITTLE BIT THERE AND THEN ONCE.
THAT FIRE WAS OUT. PEOPLE
MOVED AGAIN. SO KIND OF
DOWNTOWN GRAND ROBERTS HAS BEEN
LIKE A PLAYGROUND SO TO SAY FOR
THIS FOR THIS DEMONSTRATION
THAT TURNED VIOLENT SORRY ABOUT
THAT LANGUAGE THERE. BUT IT'S
DEFINITELY. IT'S DISPERSING BUT
POLICE HAVE DEFINITELY IT SEEMS
LIKE THEY HAVE BARRICADED OR.
THEY'RE REALLY THE EPICENTER OF
DOWNTOWN. THEY THEY SEEM TO
HAVE IT A LITTLE BIT MORE UNDER
CONTROL. BUT AGAIN WE'VE SEEN
CARS SPEEDING EVERY WHICH WAY
LIKE THERE WAS CARS LIKE PARKED
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET AND
THEN MAKING A TURNS ON SO IT BE
INTERESTING TO SEE TOMORROW ALL
THE DAMAGE THAT WAS DONE AND. I
THINK THE MOST ALARMING THING
OR THE MOST SHOCKING THING WAS
WHEN THERE WAS DEMONSTRATORS OR
PROTESTERS BANGING.
OUT THE WINDOWS OF THE
SECRETARY OF STATE. WE'RE GOING
INTO THE BUILDING AND IT WAS
JUST KIND OF LIKE ONE PERSON AT
A TIME TAKING WHATEVER THEY
COULD AND RUNNING AT THE
BUILDING AS FAST AND AS HARD AS
THEY COULD TO SHATTER MORE
WINDOWS WE SAW GLASS WAS FLYING
EVERYWHERE. THEY WERE TRYING TO
LIKE CARDBOARD ON FIRE T GET
THE BUILDING ON FIRE WHICH YOU
DIDN'T SO. REALLY IT'S IT'S
BEEN WAY DID NOT SEE THIS THIS
COMING AND AS REFERRED TO
ORGANIZER'S TONIGHT WHO
INITIALLY PLANNED THAT WAS
SUPPOSED TO BE A SILENT MARCH.
THIS WAS NOT NOT. THEIR PLAN
EITHER BUT.
IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO
SEE HOW THE NIGHT CONTINUES
BECAUSE I WOULD SAY IT RIGHT
WHEN IT GOT DARK IS WHEN THE
VIOLENCE REALLY REALLY STARTED
TO TAKE OVER WELL INCREDIBLE TO
SEE THE IMAGES THAT WE'VE SEEN
TONIGHT ALL OVER THE DAMAGE
THAT UNFOLDED I'M CURIOUS AND
MAYBE IT'S NOT A FAIR QUESTION
BECAUSE I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN
DEALING WITH HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE
OUT THERE BUT DO YOU GET A
SENSE THAT THE FOLKS WHO ARE
OUT THERE NOW AND THE FOLKS WHO
WERE PART OF WHAT WE SAW
DEVOLVED A T END OF THE NIGHT
DO YOU GET A SENSE THAT THEY
WERE PARTICIPATING IN WHAT WAS
HAPPENING AT SIX O'CLOCK. THE
SILENT PROTESTS THAT THIS
STARTED. VERY IT'S A DIFFERENT
CROWD MAYBE MAYBE SOME OF
COURSE SOME OF THE SAME PEOPLE
BUT I WOULD SAY WHEN WE WERE
WALKING IN THAT SILENT MARCH
WAY IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO
GO BACK AND LOOK AT HER
INTERVIEWS BECAUSE I WAS. I
REMEMBER AT ONE POINT THIS
AFTERNOON. I THOUGHT THE REPORT.
I'D BE TELLING YOU RIGHT NOW IS
INTERVIEWING A MAN IN HIS IN
HIS EIGHT YEAR OLD NEPHEW AND
HE WAS SHOWING HIM THE
IMPORTANCE OF BEING PART OF A
PEACEFUL DEMONSTRATION IN BLACK
LIVES MATTER AND IT WAS. IT WAS.
IT WAS AN INSPIRING INTERVIEW
TO SEE HIM KIND OF SHOWING THE
NEXT GENERATION.
HEY WANT A BETTER FUTURE FOR
HIS NEPHEW. AND SO IF YOU THINK
ABOUT THAT WHEN THERE WAS A LOT
OF FAMILIES PEOPLE HAD THEIR
DOGS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
THERE WAS OLDER PEOPLE YOUNGER
PEOPLE KIDS LIKE I MENTIONED.
THAT'S VERY VERY DIFFERENT THAN
THAN THE WHEN THINGS TURNED A
LITTLE BIT MORE VIOLENT I WOULD
SAY PEOPLE ARE MOSTLY IN.
THEIR TWENTIES OR THIRTIES
KIND OF YOUNGER. DEFINITELY NO
KIDS AROUND WHICH THANKFULLY SO
BUT IT.
WAS A DIFFERENT CROWD AT
LEAST THE ONES THE PROTESTERS
THAT STUCK IT OUT WHEN THINGS
TURN MORE VOLATILE THAT THAT
WAS NOT EXACTLY THAT THE MAKEUP
OF PEOPLE WE SAW AT THE
BEGINNING JACQUELINE FRANCIS
EXCELLENT REPORTING TONIGHT
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COVERAGE A
TRUE SERVICE TO OUR CITY AS SO
MANY PEOPLE WANT TO KNOW AND
GET AN IDEA OF WHAT'S GOING ON
YOU. DEALT WITH SOME DIFFICULT
CONDITIONS TO SHARE THAT STORY