July 4th Protest Planned For Atlantic City

You may have noticed your social media feed has gone back to normal as of late. The news cycle has turned, the immediate outrage has waned. Lots of people are still using their platforms to remind everyone that the fight isn't over, but things are less of a boil and more of a simmer.

Get ready to potentially see things go crazy again, because a group of people in Atlantic City this Saturday, July 4th, will be exercising their First Amendment right to Freedom of Speech, to Peaceably Assemble, and to Petition the Government for a Redress of Grievances.

Steve Young, an activist who is organizing the event (and also a member of the city’s Planning Board and Citizens Advisory Board), said the goal is to "bring light to the oppression and the racism" in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and the whole country.

Young said

They don’t hear us. We are going to speak up and stand up for our rights. It’s now or never. No justice, no peace.

When Young was asked about plans for the protest, including potentially "shutting down the city" by blocking the Atlantic City Expressway, he declined to reveal any specifics.

The Atlantic City Police Department said they respect the rights of protesters, but stressed that "criminal activity will not be tolerated, and those that engage in committing unlawful conduct will be arrested."

We've seen a peaceful protest go down in Toms River, we've seen (mostly) peaceful protests in Asbury Park and other areas around New Jersey...but something about this just makes me worry about a greater potential for violence. If you had planned to spend your July 4th in Atlantic City, you may want to reconsider and just take a trip to LBI or Cape May or Belmar.

UPDATE: we got a message on Facebook from listener Andrew. He said his girlfriend works at one of the stores in the AC Outlets, and they've already told their staff that they will be closed on the 4th. Apparently all the stores in the outlet are planning to close in case things go crazy, so you're probably going to want to avoid AC entirely.