Protesters To Respond Publicly After Inland Port Rally Turned Violent
Jul 11, 2019, 5:46 AM | Updated: 5:58 am
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Protesters involved in a chaotic rally that erupted into violence have announced they’ll be holding a press conference Thursday.
Protesters gathered at the City County Building on Tuesday before making their way to the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce offices across the street at 175 East 400 South, where the Port Authority was having a meeting. It was there the protest turned violent. Eight people were arrested, three of whom were cited and released. The other five were taken to jail.
The activists who were protesting the Inland Port scheduled a press conference for 9 a.m. Thursday to tell their side of the story.
WATCH: Raw Video Of Protesters’ Clash With Police
In a statement, the group Civil Riot claimed the media and law enforcement have misconstrued the facts of the demonstration.
“Environmental justice activists occupied the Salt Lake City Chamber of Commerce to directly address Derek Miller in protest of the construction of the inland port,” the statement read in part. “… The significance of this protest has been lost in the media as the Salt Lake City Police Department and government officials have misconstrued the activists as agents of violence rather than agents of change.”
I call on all public officials and candidates for Salt Lake City Mayor to condemn today's protests at the Chamber of Commerce. This was not just a protest; this was borderline terrorism. This was bullying, intimidation, and violence, and will not be tolerated. #utpol pic.twitter.com/hUEolEh7KM
— Gov. Gary Herbert (@GovHerbert) July 10, 2019
Gov. Gary Herbert on Tuesday sent a tweet calling for all public officials and candidates for Salt Lake City mayor to condemn the protests.
“This was not just a protest; this was borderline terrorism,” he tweeted. “This was bullying, intimidation, and violence, and will not be tolerated.”
The governor on Wednesday publicly responded to the events, saying, “I observed something yesterday that I’ve never seen before in the state of Utah.”
