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‘White people jumped this black guard…,’ racism twist to Montgomery Alabama dock brawl
The battle began after a group of boaters attacked a Riverfront dock worker, according to witnesses
A massive brawl broke out on Saturday, August 5, on a dock in Alabama. Dozens of people were involved in the fight, which has been captured on video. The battle began aftera group of boaters attacked a Montgomery Riverfront dock worker, according to witnesses, New York Post reported.
People were thrown in the river and many were hit with a folding chair. Many ended up in handcuffs, as per footage posted to social media. As many as four active warrants were issued by Montogomery police as of Sunday, August 6. More warrants will possibly be issued after the videos are reviewed, local NBC affiliate station WSFA reported.
The incident took place at the 200 block of Coosa Street at about 7 pm on Saturday, police have confirmed. As per a witness, the group of boaters refused to move their pontoon to allow the Harriott II Riverboat to dock. Some tweets suggested that the fight was racial as “white people jumped this black security guard,” but there is no official statement on racism being involved.
What does the video show?
In the video, a shirtless man is seen starting the fight, running up andpunching the dock worker in the face. The two then struggle, before two more men join in to assault the staffer. A woman is heard screaming and urging others to help.
A man is then seen running to the dock and jumping in the river, swimming over to help the staffer being beaten up. Several other people quickly approach the area, trying to defend the worker, and the video ends.
A different video of the incident shows agroup of people approaching the pontoon with the opposing groups starting to throw punches. People pull each other’s hair, and a woman is tossed into the water. Bystanders are heard yelling.
A third video shows men and women joining the fight, with one man hitting another with a folding chair. Finally, officers are seen grabbing and cuffing him, as well as several other pontoon boaters
Montgomery mayor Steven Reed took to X to issue a statement on the incident. “Last night, the Montgomery Police Department acted swiftly to detain several reckless individuals for attacking a man who was doing his job. Warrants have been signed and justice will be served,” Mayor Steven L. Reed wrote.
“This was an unfortunate incident which never should have occurred. As our police department investigates these intolerable actions, we should not become desensitized to violence of any kind in our community. Those who choose violence will be held accountable by our criminal justice system,” the mayor added.
