Activists arrested Saturday in Fort Worth during Black Love, Enough is Enough protest
Three activists with Fort Worth protest groups Black Love and Enough is Enough were arrested Saturday night during a march that turned tense when police issued a citation for using a bullhorn.
Natasha “Nysse” Nelson, 35, was arrested at 7:45 p.m. in the 300 block of Commerce Street on suspicion of failure to identify.
Nelson “was warned regarding use of a bull horn to hail individual people in violation of city ordinance,” according to a police incident report. “She continued and was issued a citation for this offense. While being detained she gave false [information] to the officers.”
As of Sunday afternoon, Nelson was listed on the Tarrant County inmate lookup as being held on $500 bond.
Police also arrested Lucid Shinobi, 23, of Fort Worth, later Saturday night on suspicion of three counts of interference with public duties. Police alleged Shinobi committed those crimes about 8:15 p.m. Thursday in the 100 block of North Houston Street. About that time Thursday, protesters faced off with police officers who blocked them from re-entering the restaurant Texas de Brazil, at 101 N. Houston St., where the marchers said a customer had thrown water in a protester’s face earlier in the night.
Tarrant County Jail records on Sunday afternoon showed that Shinobi was released on $1,500 bond.
Manuel Arzate-Sifuentes, 21, of Fort Worth, was arrested about 8 p.m. Saturday on suspicion of obstructing a highway or passageway. Police alleged Arzate-Sifuentes stood in front of a moving police vehicle on Main Street and that officers told him multiple times to move before he was arrested.
Tarrant County Jail records listed his bond at $500.
When the arrest of Shinobi was announced to the protesters, Malikk Austin, of the Brotherhood Movement, said the group needed to split up for the night and rethink strategy.
The group of about 100 to 150 started the night gathered at the Tarrant County Courthouse before marching around downtown, stopping outside restaurants with patios where organizer Roy Montelongo addressed them over a bullhorn.
He urged patrons of Del Frisco’s Grille, Taco Diner, Little Red Wasp and Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse to join the demonstrations Sunday evening.
Montelongo didn’t yell. He apologized for interrupting their meals and made a call for their support — sometimes to applause from diners.
At Little Red Wasp and Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse, others spoke to urge the diners to join the cause. At every stop, the majority of activists were instructed by organizers to stay off the sidewalks. They didn’t attempt to enter any of the businesses Saturday night.
When the group reached the Flying Saucer, Nelson told the restaurant’s customers on the patio that the protests will not stop.
“Just remember, we are not here for no reason,” Nelson said. “No one can silence us because our first constitutional right, our First Amendment, says we have the freedom of speech and the freedom to protest. So we will be out here and we will let our voices ring ... it’s not because we dislike you. It’s not because we’re mad at you. We just need your help.”
She also talked about a woman from their group who said she was fired from that Flying Saucer location for participation in the demonstrations.
Shannon Wynne, owner of Flying Saucer Draught Emporium, said in an email his understanding of the situation was that the employee’s activism led to negative online comments about the company, including that they were “a racist company or something like that.”
He added that he’d never personally met the employee.
He said in an email that he is “pro-protesting, anti-violence, BLM all the way.”
While Nelson was speaking, police began writing a citation. After she finished, Nelson and other activists with the group noticed she was being written a citation and the scene became more tense.
Activists began shouting at police, asking them why they were writing the citation and why Nelson was the only person getting one. Some stepped onto the sidewalk against the urging of the group’s security team to demand they also get citations for using the bullhorn.
“If you give a citation to her, you have to give one to all of us,” several shouted.
They were not given one.
Protesters said Nelson should not receive a citation after police did not arrest a man who threw water in the face of one activist when the group went into Texas de Brazil on Thursday evening to disrupt business. Oneidra Ester reported she was the person assaulted by a customer during that incident, according to police records. A report was filed with Fort Worth police, but there is no indication that anyone has been charged. The full details of the report were not available online. The Star-Telegram has filed an open records request with the police department.
While writing the bullhorn citation Saturday, a group of bicycle police moved in front of the Flying Saucer’s patio, blocking it off with their bikes. Another group pushed back some protesters who had moved away from the main group and a couple dozen feet farther north on Commerce Street.
When police left the area, activists moved back to the courthouse, where organizers urged parents with children to get their kids home, saying they would continue to march.
After about 20 minutes, demonstrators began marching back down Main Street. They followed a seemingly impromptu course through the area that eventually found them back at the Flying Saucer.
Police immediately moved bicycle officers in front of the patio, warning activists who were attempting to use the bullhorn again (this time from the street instead of the sidewalk) that they could not do so.
This elicited chants of “Black lives matter” from the group before they again moved back to the courthouse.
When organizers announced the arrest of Shinobi, the group decided to head home. Some said they should stay, but organizers decided calling it a night was the best course of action.
Austin said sitting down with the police and mayor wouldn’t do any good. They’re not the group’s friends, he said.
“We’re in a war, y’all,” Austin told the group. “We’re messing with too much money. That’s what it’s about. This (place) is deserted on a Saturday night. Look at downtown, y’all.”
The activists moved in pairs back to their vehicles, with those who felt they needed an escort moving to the front. As they departed, they chanted, “Enough is enough. Power to the people,” and urged each other to share the story of the arrests.
Mayor Betsy Price said in a statement on social media Saturday afternoon that she had met with some protest leaders earlier in the day.
“Today I met with members of groups that have been protesting in the recent weeks,” Price tweeted. “This was not my first meeting with those protesting and it won’t be my last. Today we discussed calls to action and ways we can make progress in the community. I have committed to bringing this discussion to a public City Council work session, so that the entire community can hear Council take part in these critical conversations. Let’s keep working.”
Enough is Enough also tweeted to share documents the group says it submitted to the city Saturday, including a list of 13 demands and a budget recommendation to reallocate police funding to other community resources.
“This morning we met with @MayorBetsyPrice and handed her and other city officials a list of our demands,” the group tweeted. “There is a community work session meeting scheduled for June 23rd to discuss our demands line-by-line.”
After Saturday night’s arrests, Enough is Enough tweeted, “We view this as a retaliation for our persistence and an attempt to turn the community against us. This will fail. This movement is galvanizing our community more than ever.”
This story was originally published June 13, 2020 at 5:36 PM.