People Yelled ‘I Hope They Die’ About Ambushed LA Deputies. They Weren’t BLM Protesters.
On Saturday night, after two Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies were shot in the head while sitting in their patrol car, a handful of people stood outside the hospital where they were being treated and celebrated the attack. At least one person shouted that he hoped the deputies died.
Right-wing media, including Fox News and Breitbart, latched onto the story, eager to link the small gathering to the massive Black Lives Matter movement against police brutality and systemic racism.
President Donald Trump and his allies often stoke fears over BLM and the anti-racism protests that have erupted across the nation following the police killing of George Floyd in May, claiming demonstrators are left-wing extremists.
But it wasn’t just the usual Trump-friendly outlets that made the LA connection. Many headlines and articles in local and national outlets vaguely described the demonstrators as “a group” of “Black Lives Matter protesters.”
In fact, the demonstration consisted of four people. They were members of the so-called Africa Town Coalition ― a Black advocacy group that is not affiliated with the Black Lives Matter national organization.
The LA County Sheriff’s Office tweeted Saturday that a “group” was blocking the emergency entries and exits to the hospital and chanting “we hope they die” about the deputies. (One of the wounded deputies was released from the hospital on Wednesday; the other remained in stable condition. No arrests have been made in the shooting.)
Cellphone video recorded by one of the demonstrators shows the four men walking toward the hospital’s entrance and attempting to get inside before people who appear to be hospital staff members tell them they can’t enter.
The small group can be heard celebrating the deputies’ injuries and bashing police officers as “pigs” and “murderers.” At least one shouts that he hopes the deputies “fucking die.” Eventually, roughly a dozen law enforcement...
