Protesters rally behind mother and daughters manhandled, arrested by Fort Worth police officer

Protesters gathered in downtown Fort Worth, TX Thursday night to protest in response to a viral video showing a Fort Worth police officer rough up a woman and her two daughters.

Why they are protesting

As reported earlier, 46-year-old Jacqueline Craig called the Fort Worth police officers after her son and daughter came to tell her a neighbor had put the 7-year-old in a chokehold for allegedly “littering”.

After the officer exchanges words with the neighbor, the officer turns to Craig and says “what’s wrong with you”.

Craig tells him that the neighbor choked her son for reportedly throwing a piece of paper on the ground and not picking it up when the neighbor asked him to.

The officer, who has yet to be identified, begins to antagonize Craig, telling her that she needs to teach her son not to litter.

“Why don’t you teach your son not to litter?”

“He can’t prove to me that he did or didn’t, but it doesn’t matter,” Craig says. “That doesn’t give him the right to put his hands on him.”

To which the officer responds, “Why not?”

Craig and her 19-year-old daughter were arrested by the officer, who has since been put on restricted duty pending an investigation. Her 15-year-old daughter was detained.

Fort Worth protest

 About 150 protesters gathered in downtown Fort Worth, TX at Tarrant County Courthouse at 7 p.m. on Thursday.

“It’s time to stand up and protect your community,” LaShadion Anthony said. “If you came out here for a kumbaya, you came to the wrong place.”

Fort Worth pastor Sharon Mason Ford-Turner said Craig called police for help and received none.

“When we call the Fort Worth PD, we want help. Not to be arrested,” she said. “She called him to help. And he questioned her.”

Activist Dominique Alexander of the Next Generation Action Network called on Fort Worth Police Department’s  leadership to “do the right thing.”

“If you do not serve the diversity of this community, you’ve got to go,” he said while addressing the crowd.

Kim Cole, an attorney with the Next Generation Action Network, tried to rally the crowd together. She said the group needed to hold officers accountable, but would not be able to do so if the activists were divided.

“Let your exasperation be your motivation,” she said. “We can make a difference — but only if we stand together.”

Some protesters held signs saying “Hold police accountable,” “Being black is not a crime,” and “Moms stick together.”