Lancaster leaders point to outside agitators who tried to incite violence

• Alanna Elder/WITF
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  Alanna Elder was a Report for America corps member who covered Latinos in central Pennsylvania and the 2020 election.

Note: This story has been updated to include comments from a local organizer who attended Sunday’s demonstration.

(Lancaster) — Lancaster police say armed infiltrators threatened the safety of protesters in the city on Sunday.

Mayor Danene Sorace said police are looking through footage to identify several people who they noticed were wearing body armor and carrying guns.

“Anytime my officers were pelted with rocks or water bottles filled with cayenne pepper, it was coming from caucasian individuals within the crowd,” said Police Chief Jarrad Berkihiser.

Berkihiser said police saw evidence of white nationalist activity and learned of threats against the police station, city hall, and stores in Lancaster County. He said authorities are continuing to monitor those threats. He urged protesters, “if you have to demonstrate,” to stay on the sidewalks. He pointed to vehicles colliding or nearly colliding with protesters have surfaced in cities like Spokane, Denver, and Minneapolis.

“Now that we know that we have outside groups here, I’m concerned about protesters being hit by cars,” Berkihiser said.

Sorace went a bit further.

“The message that we want to convey this morning is to stay home,” she said. Sorace, along with members of the city council and Community Police Working Group, urged protesters not to attend a demonstration scheduled for Monday morning.

“These are not people who want to simply advance the interests of the protest in a more aggressive way,” said Council President Ismail Smith-Wade-El. “These are people who want to bring harm to black and brown bodies.”

Smith-Wade-El gave an appeal to young people. “I grew up here, I have been exactly where you are, and I need you to stay home if you can and stay safe so that you can stay in the fight, because we need you,” he said.

City council member Xavier Garcia-Molina said he was among those who stayed late to make sure the protest ended peacefully. He said there were children younger than 14 who were there.

“Rest up,” he said. “Stay home. Let’s figure out how to address white nationalists who are trying to deter our movement. And from there we can regather, and from there we can make sure that our children are safe.”

Burkihiser called the protest “largely peaceful.”

Police arrested seven people yesterday and took one into custody on Saturday.

A smaller group of demonstrators turned out after the press conference on Monday. Hours later, around 8:30 p.m., an organizer with Lancaster Stands Up said more than 100 people were still outside the police station.

Eliza Bloom did not hear the mayor’s press conference, but said she did hear other members of Lancaster Stands Up expressing frustration with the request not to protest.

“I believe that people have the right to peacefully protest. I also understand wanting to protect the citizens that live here in the city and also the mayor’s duty to do that,” she said. “I believe she could have stated things a little differently.”

Bloom said at least ten demonstrators told her on Sunday about white men telling protesters to meet at the police station with bricks and fire-starting supplies. She told them to report the information. to police and posted on Twitter asking people not to listen to those instructions.

She said her organization is not planning any new protests this week. “I think what Lancaster Stands up sees as our role is to help the young people that have come to the forefront of this movement,” she said.

She said the concerns from city and community leaders about safety risks do not seem to be deterring young protesters.

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Alanna is part of the Report for America program — a national service effort that places journalists in newsrooms across the country to report on under-covered topics and communities.