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At the hearing of Saladin Muammad, a U.S. Army veteran and labor activist arrested on May 13 while at a Moral Monday protest, General Assembly Police Chief Jeff Weaver testified that he received advanced intelligence reports from officers about protesters' plans ahead of events in which arrests were made.
Raleigh Police Department Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown confirmed some of Weaver's statements to the Associated Press Monday night.
Deck-Brown told AP over the phone that a plain-clothes officer attended two meetings at the Davie Street Presbyterian Church on May 6 and May 13 at the height of the Moral Monday protests.
"The purpose of the officer's presence was to determine how many people were expecting to be arrested to allow the department to gauge the sufficiency of the logistical support, such as transport vehicles, available at the Legislative Building," Deck-Brown told AP.
As Weaver testified that his department had targeted "anarchists" in the region and collected intelligence on them, there was "a murmur of disbelief among the many lawyers attending the Wake County District Court hearing," the News & Observer reports.
Weaver said his officers, who worked with Raleigh city police, scanned the many Moral Monday rallies for who they believed might be anarchists.
State NAACP president Rev. William Barber said that news of the Raleigh police behavior was concerning.
"It's not like we were planning a bank heist," Barber said after learning of the surveillance. "Mostly what we did was pray and sing."
"I am upset they felt they needed to infiltrate the way they did," Johnson said. "There was nothing to hide."
Over 940 protesters were arrested over the course of 13 consecutive Moral Monday protests, with more Moral Mondays promised in the future. The protests arose in widespread anger over a Republican-led take-over of North Carolina legislature, which has included massive budget cuts in the form of attacks on public education, voting rights and labor rights alongside generous tax breaks for the wealthy.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Jacob Chamberlain is a former staff writer for Common Dreams. He is the author of Migrant Justice in the Age of Removal. His website is www.jacobpchamberlain.com.

At the hearing of Saladin Muammad, a U.S. Army veteran and labor activist arrested on May 13 while at a Moral Monday protest, General Assembly Police Chief Jeff Weaver testified that he received advanced intelligence reports from officers about protesters' plans ahead of events in which arrests were made.
Raleigh Police Department Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown confirmed some of Weaver's statements to the Associated Press Monday night.
Deck-Brown told AP over the phone that a plain-clothes officer attended two meetings at the Davie Street Presbyterian Church on May 6 and May 13 at the height of the Moral Monday protests.
"The purpose of the officer's presence was to determine how many people were expecting to be arrested to allow the department to gauge the sufficiency of the logistical support, such as transport vehicles, available at the Legislative Building," Deck-Brown told AP.
As Weaver testified that his department had targeted "anarchists" in the region and collected intelligence on them, there was "a murmur of disbelief among the many lawyers attending the Wake County District Court hearing," the News & Observer reports.
Weaver said his officers, who worked with Raleigh city police, scanned the many Moral Monday rallies for who they believed might be anarchists.
State NAACP president Rev. William Barber said that news of the Raleigh police behavior was concerning.
"It's not like we were planning a bank heist," Barber said after learning of the surveillance. "Mostly what we did was pray and sing."
"I am upset they felt they needed to infiltrate the way they did," Johnson said. "There was nothing to hide."
Over 940 protesters were arrested over the course of 13 consecutive Moral Monday protests, with more Moral Mondays promised in the future. The protests arose in widespread anger over a Republican-led take-over of North Carolina legislature, which has included massive budget cuts in the form of attacks on public education, voting rights and labor rights alongside generous tax breaks for the wealthy.
Jacob Chamberlain is a former staff writer for Common Dreams. He is the author of Migrant Justice in the Age of Removal. His website is www.jacobpchamberlain.com.

At the hearing of Saladin Muammad, a U.S. Army veteran and labor activist arrested on May 13 while at a Moral Monday protest, General Assembly Police Chief Jeff Weaver testified that he received advanced intelligence reports from officers about protesters' plans ahead of events in which arrests were made.
Raleigh Police Department Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown confirmed some of Weaver's statements to the Associated Press Monday night.
Deck-Brown told AP over the phone that a plain-clothes officer attended two meetings at the Davie Street Presbyterian Church on May 6 and May 13 at the height of the Moral Monday protests.
"The purpose of the officer's presence was to determine how many people were expecting to be arrested to allow the department to gauge the sufficiency of the logistical support, such as transport vehicles, available at the Legislative Building," Deck-Brown told AP.
As Weaver testified that his department had targeted "anarchists" in the region and collected intelligence on them, there was "a murmur of disbelief among the many lawyers attending the Wake County District Court hearing," the News & Observer reports.
Weaver said his officers, who worked with Raleigh city police, scanned the many Moral Monday rallies for who they believed might be anarchists.
State NAACP president Rev. William Barber said that news of the Raleigh police behavior was concerning.
"It's not like we were planning a bank heist," Barber said after learning of the surveillance. "Mostly what we did was pray and sing."
"I am upset they felt they needed to infiltrate the way they did," Johnson said. "There was nothing to hide."
Over 940 protesters were arrested over the course of 13 consecutive Moral Monday protests, with more Moral Mondays promised in the future. The protests arose in widespread anger over a Republican-led take-over of North Carolina legislature, which has included massive budget cuts in the form of attacks on public education, voting rights and labor rights alongside generous tax breaks for the wealthy.