Throughout the era of President Donald Trump, protests remains a potent force in American politics — although Trump has suggested that protests should be illegal. In Michigan this week, demonstrators took to the streets to rally for an increased minimum wage, where some of them were hit by a truck in an incident authorities have described as seemingly unintentional.
The group included Democratic nominee in the Michigan governor’s race Gretchen Whitmer, although she was not injured, having been at the front of the crowd when the unidentified driver ran into the back. Others though, were not so lucky, with a total of some eight people ending up in the hospital with apparently not life threatening injuries according to Flint Police Chief Tim Johnson. Johnson said that while on the scene, he originally personally saw several people on the ground.
There’s no word as to whether the driver behind the incident will face any kind of prosecution; as mentioned, Johnson says they seemed to have ran into the crowd by accident. The demonstration was taking place in the early morning, for the record, with the crash occurring at around 7 a.m. local time, which may have contributed to the danger. In short, it was dark out — sunrise this morning in Flint, Michigan, was at 7:34 a.m.
According to reports, after the driver hit some of the early morning demonstrators, they veered into oncoming traffic and ran into another vehicle. There’s no word as to whether or not either the original driver or the person behind the wheel of the second vehicle were injured in any way.
The original driver just seemed “pretty shaken up,” according to Chief Johnson.
He explained:
‘The end of the group was walking down the street when a red truck – he almost acted liked he didn’t see them. He ran right into them… I don’t think it was intentional.’
Despite this peril seeming accidental in nature, the incident unfolded in a long fraught national political environment. Just throughout recent days, demonstrators have taken to Washington, D.C., to advocate against the confirmation of credibly accused sexual predator Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. Dozens were arrested during those demonstrations, which mirrors what happened during his initial public confirmation hearings.
There’s been talk of more big protests on the horizon too.
In addition, in the meantime, demonstrators have also turned out around the country to make their voices heard in support of common sense gun control. The mass shooting survivor-driven March for Our Lives unfolded in D.C. earlier this year — with concurrent marches around the country — although for now, the majority Republican leadership in the nation’s capital hasn’t proven keen on the idea of enacting protections.
That situation could change, though, in Washington and around the country.
For instance, in Michigan, where a Republican (Rick Snyder) currently serves as the state’s chief executive, Democratic candidate Gretchen Whitmer seems well on her way taking her place in Lansing. Polls consistently have her ahead.
The situation is similar in D.C., with Democrats expected to take control of the U.S. House and possibly ending up the U.S. Senate majority party too come November.
In other words, change is on the horizon.
Featured Image via YouTube screenshot
