Fewer than 10 protesters, some with guns, came to Louisiana Capitol Sunday to share their views
BATON ROUGE —Protesters were expected to gather at Louisiana's capitol building Sunday to show their support for President Donald Trump ahead of president-elect Joe Biden's inauguration. But by mid-afternoon, the day had been largely uneventful.
Fewer than 10 people came to the state capitol to make their views known.
Three men in Hawaiian shirts and military vests arrived at the Louisiana Capitol Building with guns around 3:30 p.m. Sunday. One who called himself Mr. Galaxy, and said he was from the Shreveport area, said they were not affiliated with any specific organization but rather "likeminded people who believe in the same things."
He said Sunday’s event had been planned for months, not to be violent but as a final opportunity before the inauguration to "bring people together to talk and learn from each other."
"We want to get different perspectives and bring a sense of peace and unity," the 26-year-old man said. "We wanted to come together as a people. That’s what America is about."
"We’ve been so busy fighting each other that we’re not focusing on problems," he said, listing police brutality on Black people as a major issue that should be addressed.
He said he was disappointed in Sunday’s sparse attendance and he believed the cause was misinformation from the media that the event would have been violent. He hoped to see more public gatherings across the nation depending on Sunday’s success.
"I would like to give another opportunity to let us speak for ourselves and not be intimidated," he said
The first protestor to arrive at the capitol came shortly after noon Sunday. Austin, 27, approached warily, wearing a navy blazer and mostly blending in with the smattering of media and families out enjoying the sunshine.
He did not want to give his last name because he feels Trump supporters have been targeted violently. In fact, he waited to put on his red MAGA hat until after he’d walked up to the Capitol building. He said he felt like he had to hide.
Once he acknowledged he had come to join a protest, he said he was disappointed no one else seemed to have arrived. He had used a ride share service to make the trip from Port Allen after he’d heard on the morning news that Louisiana Guardsmen are being deployed for the presidential inauguration.
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Austin said he spent eight years in the National Guard. His primary reason for showing Sunday was his opposition to any mobilization of Louisiana soldiers to a national event.
"Let law enforcement do their job, and bring the Guard home," Austin said. "This isn’t a matter for the military."
He also is worried of potential exposure to COVID-19 at the inauguration.
"That’s a mass gathering if I ever heard of one," he said.
He said he condemned the Jan. 6 invasion of the U.S. Capitol and blamed it on Antifa, a political movement of far-left militants who oppose neo-Nazi and white supremacists at demonstrations and events, despite that claim being widely discredited.
"It’s a show of force to support the tyranny of a fraudulent election," Austin said.
By 2:30 p.m. there was one man sitting alone on the Capitol steps holding a small Black Lives Matter sign. He did not want to give him name.
There appeared to be no protesters at the Governor's mansion.
An enhanced police presence was around the capitol. Officers with the Louisiana Department of Public Safety were posted near the front steps of the building.
Social media chatter and what law enforcement called credible threats predicted pro-Trump supporters would gather at nearly every state capital and in the District of Columbia between Jan. 17 and Jan 20. The FBI and law enforcement agents warned the protests leading up to the inauguration on Jan. 20 could be violent.
The predicted demonstrations come more than a week after a pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol while Congress was meeting to certify the election results for Biden. Five people, including an officer, were killed in the riot.
More than 100 people have been arrested in connection with the Capitol riot.
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