Thousands of angry drivers stewed over the actions of Ferguson-related protesters last Wednesday who shut down I-5 during the busy morning rush hour and kept throngs of commuters from their jobs. One driver, Tyree Landrum, admonished the activists, letting them know they were potentially costing him his job and pushing one protester. The video, shot by local ABC News affiliate channel 10, has subsequently gone viral.
Marcelis Murial, the protester Landrum rebuked, has now issued an open letter in his own defense.
Murial said in the letter: “In the days following the recent protest, commenters, citizens, and a host of others have been outright critical of our demonstration.“
Murial claimed an onslaught of racial prejudice followed the report on the protesters and asserted the group was demonstrating because they didn’t want any more “#MikeBrown’s” or “names with hashtags,” then stating, “we certainly don’t want one of your children to be next.” The University of California San Diego graduate student defended the group’s actions saying, “it was for every one of the black boys and girls, men and women, that are slain in this country every 28 hours. Almost every day one black person dies to police forces, vigilantism, or security forces.“
From the freeway Wednesday morning, Landrum told ABC 10 News, “I gotta go to Ross right now, homie.” He continued, “If I don’t get there, I’m gonna get fired. I got six f***ing kids to feed, I gotta get this car off the… Day goes on homie. M*****f***ers get shot every f***ing day. Deal with it the right f***ing way, not like this,” reported Breitbart California’s Daniel Nussbaum.
Some have called Landrum a “hero” for standing up to the protesters.
“The goal wasn’t for people to get fired,” Murial asserted in his explanation, “but to hit the American economy; to stop “business as usual”. And so we chose to hit America’s wallet to let it know we don’t stand for this injustice.“
Video of Landrum confronting Murial was shown on local news but spread nationwide, and is currently showing over 1.3 million views.
Many health care workers that emerged from their cars while stopped on the freeway that morning were in scrubs on their way to work, the report noted. “Arrest them,” one said, “people we have doctors and nurses who have to save lives here.”
No protesters were arrested, according to 10 News. Murial did not issue a letter to the thousands of others kept from their jobs and destinations on the road that morning.
Image: ABC 10 News San Diego
Follow Michelle Moons on Twitter @MichelleDiana
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.