Crowd gathers to protect Confederate statue in Weatherford after protest rumors spread
About a hundred people circled the Parker County courthouse on Saturday after rumors spread that Black Lives Matter protesters were going to try and remove a Confederate statue from the courthouse lawn.
The lawn was blocked off with caution tape. State troopers, Weatherford police and sheriff’s deputies stood in groups around the square. Traffic stalled on the streets around the building, and people driving past frequently honked their horns at the counter-protesters. Several businesses shut down for the day.
Several groups of 10 to 25 people stood on patches of grass or on sidewalks around the town square. Some people flew Confederate flags. Some donned Trump 2020 paraphernalia or camouflage, and many carried shotguns, rifles or semi-automatic weapons.
Jim Webster, a former county commissioner, circled around with his truck, towing a mock jail cell that held two mannequin versions of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Banners on the fake cell read, “History Matters” and “All Lives Matter.”
As of 2 p.m., no protesters had appeared in Weatherford. Two groups — Enough is Enough Fort Worth and Parker County Progressives — announced earlier this week they had no plans to protest on Saturday.
Still, rumors abounded on social media and at Parker County Square.
Counter-protester Shawn Clark said he heard that busloads of protesters were planning to descend on the small townto tear down the Confederate statue that has been the center of debate. Social media posts speculated that a black militant group was on their way.
One person posted in the Facebook group “Hood County freedom riders” that “(law enforcement) are expecting somewhere between 2500 to 5000 antifa and BLM” at the courthouse, and “if the statue is still standing they are going to tear it down.”
On July 25, protesters, primarily from Weatherford and Fort Worth, began a peaceful protest to demand the removal of the statue, which was built in 1903 as a dedication to Confederate soldiers. About 75 protesters clashed with hundreds of people waiting at the courthouse to defend the monument. Two counter-protesters were arrested on July 25, and another was arrested on Aug. 4.
Those camped out near the statue on Saturday said they were ready to defend it again, if necessary.
Ken Josey and Clark stood near the courthouse with a Confederate flag. As lifelong Weatherford residents, they said their goal Saturday was to keep the community safe and support law enforcement. He said the monument is a dedication to those who died in the war and should not be moved.
“That statue has been here for more than 100 years without a problem, why would you move it now?” Clark said.
Defending a ‘way of life’
Some out-of-towners joined the crowd. Matt Weinberg, Tiffany Stevens and Mike Hayzlett drove from Granbury to “protect our way of life,” Weinberg said. He said he doesn’t want to see rioting and looting in the town.
“We’re not gonna let terrorists and bullies come in and destroy our way of life,” Weinberg, who carried a gun and wore a Trump shirt, said. “This is rural Texas. We’re not gonna put up with it.”
As the three stood near the street, someone screamed, “White power!” out their window at the crowd.
“Idiots like that make us all look bad,” Weinberg said.
He said the statue and counter-protest were not about racism, and the statue has never been a problem before.
Hayzlett said the statue serves as a reminder of past mistakes and not to repeat them.
“In the past, it was all about racism and we’re not about racism,” he said. “They say Black Lives Matter, we think everybody’s lives matter.”
David Haley, who has lived in Weatherford for 15 years, said he got to the square at 10 a.m. and wanted to make sure nothing was torn up or destroyed in the town by potential protesters. He said he does not think the statue is a symbol of racism and instead represents the town’s heritage.
“We don’t think nothing about people of color, we got a lot of people of color here,” he said. “My next door neighbor is, we get along fine. I’m here because I don’t want people from another town coming in trying to tear apart our town.”
Cary Glass, Clint Bonnin and Evan Williams drove from south Texas to join the counter-protest. Williams and Bonnin carried large firearms, and Williams said they were ready to help law enforcement with protesters if necessary.
Glass said he supports people’s right to protest, and understood why people protested after George Floyd’s death in the custody of police officers in Minneapolis. But he said he does not support people destroying businesses and becoming violent, and he was concerned that could happen in Weatherford.
Bonnin said the statue should not be removed because it is part of history. Instead of being torn down, the statue should be allowed to remain so people can learn from it.
Parker County Progressives want the statue to be removed and placed in another location. Initially, Parker County Judge Pat Deen said the statue would be moved as soon as the United Daughters of the Confederacy — the group that owns the statue — raised the funds to move it. However, three days later, Deen and Parker County commissioners unanimously voted to let the statue remain.
The vote prompted a protest on Aug. 2 morning outside the courthouse.
As of 3:30 p.m., groups of people remained outside the courthouse Saturday. There was no sign of protesters.
