By Julie BUTCHER

“We’ve been here – I’ve been here – every Friday since June 19. I sat down with two of the Black Lives Matter organizers and we agreed that no one would cross the street. None of the violence is coming from folks on either side of the street who’ve been here,” explained a woman holding a sign that read “All Lives Matter” on the Trump-supporting side of Foothill Boulevard in front of the Tujunga In-N-Out in the hot afternoon of Friday, Aug. 21. That was just before she jumped into action, trying to keep the peace when a protester aggressively moved into and across the wide street, wielding a long piece of PVC piping.

Two men reported that they had been at the spot the previous Friday and had witnessed the reported violence.

“Actually, both sides were trying to start something. ‘You’re a racist!’ ‘You’re a sexist!’ ‘You’re all socialists!’ Communists!’ Everyone was just screaming at each other,” one said.

A group of supporters of President Trump has been showing its active support at afternoon rallies on Foothill just west of Lowell Avenue every Friday for the last several weeks.

According to “Mike” from Tujunga who didn’t share his last name, local Black Lives Matter activists have been at the location every week to advocate for fixes to the criminal justice system, including an end to “qualified immunity” which he said allows police to escape civil accountability. The protesters on the BLM side of the street, he continued, may represent a broad, diverse swath of the political spectrum, but share a strong “bottom unity,” agreeing on basic issues.

Mike was there on Friday and expressed concern at the lack of a police presence, particularly when “Trump agitators” showed up from “elsewhere.”

As the protest began on Friday afternoon, activists on both sides of the street expressed similar sentiments.

“Almost all of the people here are peacefully exercising their right to protest. No one who lives here supports violence. The violence here has been caused by folks we don’t know coming here from who knows where – look at the license plates – to incite violence,” said one of the protesters.

Trump supporters blamed Antifa; the Black Lives Matter supporters blamed White supremacists. Several on both sides hoped the LAPD would act sooner to keep the sides apart to avoid the possibility of violence.

“Look how big this street is. There is enough [police] here. They know what’s going to happen,” one bystander observed.

“Let me make something very clear: these extremists on both sides of the street are not from our community. Our community respects and admires the Glendale police for making our neighborhood safe,” John Hayhurst said in reaction to a video on a social media platform.

Mason Francis agreed.

“I believe in this particular situation both sides are in the wrong. Hate and violence don’t solve anything and they don’t change people’s opinions or personal beliefs,” said Francis. “This protest is counter-productive for both sides and nothing more than a racist-fueled street fight at this point. It may have started as an expression of support, but has turned an ugly corner and is now tearing at the fabric of our community.”

On Friday, tensions were raised by the presence of the “Trump Unity Bridge,” a long, decorated truck that founder Rob Cortis has been driving across the country.

“Black Lives Matter doesn’t seem to care about Black people,” Cortis said. “They only care about their agenda. Our messages are positive, affirming all that President Trump has accomplished. The Democrats and Republicans I’ve met, they’re all nice people. But then they vote a straight party ticket and, in this day and age, politicians on both sides are horrible. They’re not doing what they said they’d do.”

Pro-Trump activist Tracy Academia has been a regular at the Friday demonstrations. He disagrees with the premise of Black Lives Matter.

“[BLM members] think they’re being oppressed but that’s a wrong perception. They need to wake up. We are free. We are not oppressed,” he said.

Academia is actively collecting signatures to recall Governor Newsom.

“What’s insulting is believing that one life matters over another,” said a woman holding an “All Lives Matter” sign.

Denise Soto was also onsite collecting signatures for a proposed “school choice” measure for the 2022 ballot “to end zip code discrimination.”

Cortis boomed from inside the unity truck, blasting loud messages about “Democratic cities” and “fake news.”

Trump supporters chanted “four more years” while counter protesters held signs that read “Black Lives Matter” and “White Silence is Violence.”

Just after 2 p.m., a Black Lives Matter protester carried a long pipe into the middle of the street and then crossed over to taunt the Trump supporters. Another BLM protester attempted to hold her back. Dozens of police cars arrived on the scene and two arrests were made. Around 3 p.m. approximately 200 Black Lives Matter activists arrived. Trump supporters were estimated at approximately 100 by that time.

Officers responding from LAPD’s Foothill Division allowed the two sides to interact while the arrests were made and a section of Foothill was closed.

LAPD reports that officers arrived from LAPD’s Foothill Division at around 3 p.m. to disperse a crowd of supporters of President Trump and counter-protesters and that approximately 200 people arrived to rally against the pro-Trump demonstration often organized in the area.

Police declared an unlawful assembly and told the crowd to leave. Officials said that protesters began throwing objects at the officers who were trying to disperse the crowd and that “less lethal” munitions, like fired projectiles, were used in response, per department spokesperson Officer Mike Chan.

In its statement, the Los Angeles Police Dept. said, “At some point during this altercation, a counter-protester struck a Trump supporter with a pipe.”

“The LAPD will continue to provide the necessary resources to ensure the safe and peaceful expression of opinions. When demonstrators begin to violate the law and create unsafe conditions for the demonstrators, officers and the public, department personnel will continue to take appropriate enforcement action,” it stated.

These events follow incidents of alleged violence the previous Friday at the same place. Verbal confrontations turned into physical skirmishes that resulted in at least four people reportedly requiring medical attention.

The area has attracted the attention of both sides of the political spectrum. It is likely that protesters will continue expressing their rights. Although physically only at the location on Friday afternoons, their political jabs continue on social media.

Hayhurst commented at the end of one thread.

“I am not interested in finding out more about him. I am interested in taking back the true nature of our community; the tolerance, the openness and willing to listen, the diversity and respect, the mixture of first, second or third generations, the goodness in our hearts – I want to know how we can keep this violent and ignorant ugliness out of our community.”

  Julie BUTCHER