Shakedown Street
Quick share from The Greenville News about a report of more protests planned for downtown this weekend. While the story is good and informative despite the best efforts of the "protestors" to not give information, the real story is buried 13 paragraphs in.
Basically, this protest leader says he is trying to get a meeting with the Mayor to get a review board to oversee police matters. Sounds legit. However, way down in the story is a response from Mayor Knox White and then City Councilwoman Jil Littlejohn.
White said he and other leaders planned to sit down with Wilson last Friday, but after waiting at City Hall for 35 minutes, Wilson never showed and gave no notice that he wouldn't be attending. Wilson said he had a prior commitment and could not make the meeting.
Mayor Pro Tem Jil Littlejohn said she tried to set up another meeting with Wilson that included Mayor White, Councilwoman Lillian Brock Fleming and City Manager John Castile, but Wilson declined.
In recent days, Littlejohn said she had been waiting to hear from him in regards to another invitation.
"For the past week or so, we've tried to meet with him," she said.
Main organizer Bruce Wilson claims this on Facebook as of Friday afternoon.
I'm officially reinstating our roll in protesting in the downtown Greenville area: After not being able to confirm a meeting with Mayor Knox White for over 2 weeks we feel that he does not take our grievous seriously enough to meet. We have made it known to members of City Council to it is imperative that we have a citizen review board in the city of Greenville beyond that which is currently being used: As a result of Mayor White's unwillingness to meet; we have for the last week been making plans to hold mess sit-ins in pre selected downtown businesses: The movement is not dead it simply regroup to get stronger.
Yeah, so what gives? It appears to be a political shakedown. Wilson knows there is a review board, but the problem is Wilson is not on it. Wilson knows he blew off the meeting. Wilson wants a payday. The black community has a political vacuum right now that guys like Wilson want to jump into and take over.