Dallas County Sheriff’s deputies are strategizing after the hacker group known as Anonymous allegedly claimed it’s organizing a “Day of Rage” protest with Black Lives Matter in Dallas and other U.S. locations Friday.
A video is making that rounds that calls for people to rise up in a “Day of rage.” The sheriff’s office hasn’t confirmed that a protest will occur in Dealey Plaza downtown at 6 p.m., but is proactively preparing, KDFW-TV (Channel 4) reports. Authorities are on high alert after a man ambushed police officers last Thursday in and around El Centro College as a protest passed. He killed five officers and injured more during the event, which was organized in response to the recent police killings of two black men in Louisiana and Minnesota.
Melissa Urbina of the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office said Friday morning that they’re still unsure whether or not the protest is happening later. She said she had heard rumors about Anonymous and Black Lives Matter working in conjunction, but she couldn’t confirm it.
“Usually for an event like this there’s a lot of promotion to let people know about it,” Urbina said. “We haven’t seen anything that says it’s for sure happening. That doesn’t mean that people won’t show up. We just don’t know right now.”
Urbina said the department is in “watch and wait” mode right now.
Several businesses plan to close early Friday as a precaution, including The Old Red Courthouse museum, The Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau at 3:30 p.m., Channel 4 reports. The Sixth Floor Museum, that chronicles the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, announced Friday that it will close at 4:30 p.m., instead of the usual 6 p.m. The last ticket will be sold at 3 p.m.
The video that calls for a “Day of Rage” features footage from the fatal police shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile. The graphic video can be viewed at the bottom of the post.
https://twitter.com/TheAnonnMessage/status/752349992241733632?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw