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VIDEO: BLM protesters in Oakland channel Iran, shout 'Death to America!'
September 01, 2020
This is what it's all about
Several hundred Black Lives Matter protesters, many wearing black bloc, marched through the streets of Oakland, California, last Wednesday, shouting a chant usually only heard in Iran: "Death to America!"
Video of the protesters shouting the anti-American slogan posted to Twitter on Sunday by journalist Andy Ngô quickly went viral on the platform, garnering over 2 million views.
"On Wednesday night, around 700 black bloc militants and their supporters rampaged through Oakland, Cal. They chanted 'death to America' while starting fires and smashing cars and buildings," Ngô wrote in the post.
According to the Oakland Police Department, the protesters had indeed wreaked havoc on the city by setting fires, smashing windows, and vandalizing several businesses.
In a tweet the following day, the department said, "600-700 people took part in violent & destructive protests Wed. night. numerous fires set, dozens of windows broken, multiple businesses vandalized. Protesters threw objects at officers, thankfully no officers were injured. Several people arrested."
On Monday, the department posted an update, sharing with the public that 24 arrests had been made as a result of the protests, with the majority of the arrested individuals being from out of town.
The department noted that the protesters were "violent, destructive, [and] displayed hostility towards our community members and police officers."
In Kenosha, Wisconsin, last week, a young woman shouted "Death to America" as she burned an American flag outside the county courthouse, but the protesters in Oakland kicked things up a notch by chanting the phrase en masse.
Several people replied to Ngô's tweet suggesting that the protesters should relocate to a different country, perhaps one run by a totalitarian regime, to see what real oppression looks like.
The "Death to America" chant has been used in Iran for decades since the 1979 Iranian Revolution in order to foment an anti-American sentiment in the country.
Its use by Black Lives Matter protesters is a sign that such a sentiment is also growing among leftists in America, who likely take their cues from progressive politicians who desire the toppling of American institutions.
The fact that the majority of those arrested in Oakland were not residents of the city suggests that recent violence in some American cities is not entirely the result of local unrest. It is more likely that rioters and agitators are taking advantage of bubbling unrest to accomplish their own goals.
It was recently reported that 102 of the 175 arrestees in the Kenosha riots were from out of town.
(H/T: Daily Wire)
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Phil Shiver
Phil Shiver is a former staff writer for The Blaze. He has a BA in History and an MA in Theology. He currently resides in Greenville, South Carolina. You can reach him on Twitter @kpshiver3.
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