After about an hour and half of peaceful protests from those both demonstrating against and in support of a toppled monument to Confederate soldiers on the UNC-Chapel Hill campus, police were forced to intervene when the situation became unruly.
As police began to separate the two protest groups after around 90 minutes of demonstrations, police reportedly used pepper spray on some protesters, eventually arresting three people, reports College Fix, which livestreamed the event and published the footage on Facebook.
“It was unclear which side the cops used it on, and also why exactly the pepper spray was used,” the College Fix reports. “Attempts afterward to confirm why the pepper spray was used and who it was used on were unsuccessful as two officers both told The College Fix they didn’t know and offered no further comment.”
The News & Observer posted a video of police trying to keep order that reportedly shows the “police wielding pepper spray” (warning: graphic language):
Chapel Hill Police issued a statement Thursday confirming that three demonstrators were arrested:
Among the chants from the group protesting the monument that can be heard on the Campus Fix video are “No Cops, No KKK, No Fascist USA,” “Who Do You Protect? Who Do You Serve?,” “Cops and Klan Go Hand In Hand,” and “F*** Your Flag,” in response to the pro-Conferedacy group’s Confederate flag.
The demonstration against the “Silent Sam” monument, which protesters toppled two weeks ago as officers were reportedly told to stand down, was advertised as a “Dance Party and Speakout” against the controversial monument and its supporters.