As President Trump visits Kenosha, some say 'he needs to be here,' while others 'don't appreciate it'
KENOSHA, Wis. - A few hundred supporters and detractors of President Donald Trump gathered at a city center intersection in Kenosha, engaging each other in shouting matches at times, but there were no reports of violence as the president stopped in Kenosha Tuesday, Sept. 1.
Some Kenosha residents had feared Trump’s visit Tuesday would prompt violence. Kenosha has seen days of protests and some violence since the Aug. 23 police shooting of Jacob Blake. Blake was shot seven times in the back. His family says the 29-year-old Black man is paralyzed.
Michael McCabe
"It's incredibly disrespectful," said Michael McCabe of Milwaukee. "I think the people that live here and govern here locally know what's best for this community, and it's just going to create agitation, and it's inciting violence if you ask me, and I don't appreciate it."
Tensions temporarily rose as Trump’s motorcade rolled by, with his supporters clapping and others booing and cursing. But crowd sizes were modest and passions were mostly tempered. At least two people were carrying pistols in holsters, telling those around them they were Trump supporters and had open-carry permits.
Black Lives Matter supporters momentarily clashed with Trump supporters on the other side of the street -- praising the president's decision to come to Wisconsin.
Matthew Jorganson
"Places got destroyed. People got attacked," said Matthew Jorganson. "You had a couple of shootings. I mean, this is the place he needs to be, whether you like his message or not. He needs to be here to understand what the people are doing so he can have policy changes and everything else."
By mid-afternoon, much of the crowd dispersed. A few motorcyclists remained, with flags supporting Trump, and a booth nearby sold T-shirts supporting the Black Lives Matter movement.
After dispersing for a few hours, Black Lives Matter activists marched down Sheridan late Tuesday afternoon, demanding that the Kenosha police officer who shot Blake in the back seven times be fired and arrested.
"It's been what, a couple months since George Floyd -- and what has changed?" said Nico Estwind of Chicago. "Black people are still being murdered in the streets."
"When we say Black Lives Matter, we aren't talking about just black lives," said Johanna Skildum of Milwaukee. "We're talking about all lives. Black ones are under attack right now. We're trying to get them to see that if we all came together, how beautiful this could be."
President Trump said he doesn’t believe that there’s a problem with systemic racism in policing as he wrapped his tour in Kenosha. The president said police are sometimes under tremendous pressure and don’t handle it well.
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