The Story Behind the Montgomery Brawl

This brawl from Montgomery, Alabama was the most talked about on social media and national news. A brawl between a group of white men fighting with a black co-captain employee which turns into a massive brawl involving more black people getting involved in stopping the fight, a man with a folding chair, and a 16-year-old employee swimming his way to stop the fight. The brawl went viral becoming the most talked about on social media receiving praise from the black community and laughter mocking the brawl.

If you thought this brawl was crazy, read an article story on "The Malice at the Palace"

August 5, 2023

It was the evening at the Riverfront Park in Montgomery, Alabama when the Harriott II riverboat carrying 227 passengers returned to the waterfront and tried to dock in its designated, reserved spot but found the private boat docked in its space. At the dock, A black co-captain who was identified as Damien Pickett sees the boat and was just doing his duty trying to get the boat owners to move their boat.

At the riverboat, passengers on the boat were watching the filming, some and some were singing Ludacris's song "Move B***H" luring the boat owners to move. According to the witnesses, they heard men cussing at each other. A shirtless man punches Pickett. The co-captain takes off his cap and decides to take matters into his own hands and another employer that was right by him tries to intervene to stop the fight. More continue to intervene and beat up the co-captain. A 16-year-old employer as Aaron Rudolph identified as who saw the fight jumped off the boat to swim across the water to stop which surprised everybody. He later made it to the dock to stop. He helps the co-captain but the fight continued on.

The fight continued with black people coming in to defend the co-captain, after more men came in, a black man brought a folding chair and started using it to hit one of the men. Security came in the brawl stopping them, handcuffing them, and ending the fight.

The massive brawl video would go viral and started making viral memes.

Here are some examples:

From reenactment to using civil rights activists smiling and celebrities reacting to the brawl. Rapper Gmac Cash made a song inspired by the brawl.

Also, folding chairs are selling like hotcakes, and everyone using the brawl to make and sell merch. Unfortunately, Montgomery Police and the Mayor of Alabama didn't find it a laughing matter at all. Three men who attacked the co-captain had been charged. Richard Roberts was charged with third-degree assault, the other two men: 23-year-old Allen Todd, and 25-year-old Zachary Shipman, and the woman in the brawl identified as 21-year-old Mary Todd have been charged with assault charges. The man who used the folding chair identified as Reggie Ray was arrested as well but was later released. It is unclear if Pickett and the rest of the staff from the Riverfront have been suspended or terminated from the job. The investigation is still pending after the brawl was seen all over the world.

Their mugshots

Montgomery Racial History

Just when the video of the brawl went viral online, it turned the spotlight on Montgomery’s racial history. The city played a central role in the transatlantic slave trade, as enslaved people would arrive on its riverfront to be sold in the city’s slave markets. It later became the birthplace of the civil rights movement, after Rosa Parks’ refusal to give up her bus seat to a White man in December 1955 led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the first major protest against segregation. People would mention it on Tiktok and Instagram.

Honestly, I really don't believe it had anything to do with a hate crime because no one has mentioned that the suspects ever said anything about the men saying but who knows the whole brawl is pending investigation but it was indeed payback for all the racial violence which explains why everybody brought up the past after all Montgomery is the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement. Hopefully, everybody that was involved in the Montgomery Brawl will learn a valuable lesson from it sooner or later they will look back and laugh.

Source

YouTube

CNN