It feels like these stories are becoming more commonplace than ever before. Black people who are simply minding their business are getting harassed and assaulted simply for the color of their skin.
Charles Murrell III is a teacher and musician who lives in the Boston area. He says that on July 2, 2022, he went to the area surrounding the Boston Public Library to play his saxophone. Sounds sweet right?
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He alleges that in the middle of his performance, he was surrounded by members of the Patriot Front, a white nationalist hate group from Texas, and brutally punched, kicked, and beat with metal shields during their march through the Boston area a year ago.
Murrell claims it was a “coordinated, brutal, and racially motivated attack.” He was taken to the hospital and treated for lacerations which required stitches, according to the Associated Press.
As a result of the injuries he sustained and the unwarranted reasoning for his alleged assault, Murrell filed a lawsuit against the white supremacist group.
More from the Associated Press:
“As a result of this beating, Mr. Murrell sustained physical injuries to his face, head, and hand, all of which required medical attention. Mr. Murrell also continues to suffer significant emotional distress to this day as a result of the incident,” the suit says.
“Among other harms, those physical and emotional injuries have adversely affected Mr. Murrell’s ability to earn a living as a musician.”
He has “been plagued by severe anxiety, mental anguish, invasive thoughts, and emotional distress, including, but not limited to, persistent concern for his physical safety and loss of sleep,” and “routinely has nightmares and flashbacks,” according to the suit.
A year ago, shortly after the alleged incident occurred, Murrell urged the city to open an investigation. But since it has remained open and no one from the Patriot Front has been charged with any crimes, according to the Suffolk district attorney’s office.
Murrell is seeking civil rights, assault, and battery charges and wants to be compensated for “unspecified damages,” according to AP.
While photos of the incident are available, no video has been released or shared with the public. But the attorney for the Patriot Front, Jason Lee Van Dyke, has implied that there is footage of the incident.
He said, “I happen to have seen the raw video footage and it was clear that Charles Murrell was the aggressor and no one with the Patriot Front did anything unlawful.”
In my eyes, the best way to end all this is to have the video footage released so we can see who was and wasn’t getting beat up by a group of people from a white supremacist hate group.
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