'Picture Perfect': Lawrenceville Protest Starts, Ends Peacefully

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA — Monday night’s George Floyd demonstration in front of Lawrenceville City Hall started and ended peacefully — but not without a little excitement in the middle.

Starting at 5 p.m., a crowd that grew to nearly 200 — mostly young, most wearing masks — waved signs and chanted from behind a barricade at the corner of South Clayton and Nash, guarded by multiple Gwinnett police agencies.

As cars headed down Clayton detoured left onto Nash, some drivers honked and waved as demonstrators shouted in response. One SUV with Clark Atlanta University plates even had “Stand Up With Floyd” painted onto its back window.

“We respect a lot of police officers. A lot of people have police officers in their families. But we are tired,” said Andrew Brown of Lawrenceville, one of several who spoke to the crowd via megaphone from the hill opposite city hall. “We don’t want to be here again next year.”

Among local officials at the demonstration was Gwinnett County Commissioner Marlene Fosque, who said she planned to talk with some of the young demonstrators.

“I just want to make sure that we’re protesting with a purpose,” Fosque told Patch.

“I’m just hoping that nobody hijacks this and uses this for the wrong purposes.” Lawrenceville Mayor David Still said to Patch at about 5:30 p.m. “I’m all for peaceful protests.”

As the evening wore on, though, some demonstrators marched down Clayton Street toward the Lawrenceville square. According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, a few began to shout into officers’ faces, asking if they understood why the protesters were angry.

Still, none of the confrontations escalated to violence.

Eventually, the marchers settled behind another barricade at the corner of South Clayton Street and Branson Street, where a few hurled insults at the police line while officers stood silently.

By 7:15 p.m., The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported, while tensions were still high, most protesters had migrated back to the area in front of city hall. Some protesters even struck up conversations with members of Gwinnett County’s SWAT team. One SWAT officer was overheard saying that he’d just as soon be home watching Netflix.

As the 9 p.m. curfew approached, outgoing Gwinnett County Sheriff Butch Conway helped calm the crowd by wading into it, talking with protesters and walking with some of them back to their cars.

“Listening is vital to communication and it’s hard to listen to people when they’re attacking you or screaming at you,” the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office posted on its Facebook page. “It’s also hard to be heard when you’re being placed in the back of a patrol car under arrest. Nobody wins that way.”

The demonstration appeared to end without incident. No damage, injuries or arrests were reported by Gwinnett police agencies as of 10 p.m. Monday.

“It closed down picture perfect for all,” Still texted to Patch Monday night.

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