HAMLIN, N.Y. – A protest in Hamlin took a tense turn when counter-protesters drove through the protest zone, yelling threats and covering the crowd in smoke.
On Saturday, around 100 people gathered at the corner of Route 18 and 19 as part of the national coalition of No Kings protests. News10NBC’s Erin Mahon spoke with some of the participants about the events that unfolded.
Mary O’Neill, co-organizer of the protest, said the harassment was initially annoying but manageable. However, she said the situation escalated.
“I think there was a shift toward the end, or the conclusion of, the protest when a gentleman came up to several of our protesters and said he was going to come back with his guns and shoot us up,” O’Neill said. “And I think when that happened, we got a little nervous.”
Melissa Crawford, a member of the Hamlin Democrat Committee, described a frightening encounter with a counter-protester.
“I was standing here, my mom was right next to me and it was just out of nowhere this guy comes flying up, starts doing donuts,” Crawford said. “And I mean he was like three feet away, but you couldn’t see the car because there was so much smoke surrounding it. And that was scary.”
Organizers said they have protested in Hamlin before but usually do not have as many attendees as they did on Saturday. Carol Zugo, vice president of the Hamlin Democrat Committee and co-organizer of the protest, expressed her concerns.
“Well I’m not a Trumper so I definitely disagree with them, but they had every right to be here, but they just should’ve been peaceful, and not threatening,” Zugo said. “And I really was concerned when I was standing there and they came around because I had to jump out of the way so I wasn’t killed.”
Town Supervisor Steve Baase said he has no problem with protests but prefers they take place in front of Town Hall rather than at Hamlin’s busiest intersection. He also condemned the violence shown by counter-protesters.
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