After weeks of protests, ReOpenNC leader cancels future rallies in Raleigh
After weeks of protests, the group known as ReOpenNC is canceling future rallies in downtown Raleigh, organizers announced Friday.
Instead, the group will implement a “strategy shift,” co-founder Ashley Smith said in a statement. The group will begin a more “micro approach” focused on small businesses starting June 1, according to the statement.
“Stage 1” was concentrated on “getting the word out” about the group’s objections to North Carolina’s stay-at-home orders, Smith said.
N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper ordered restaurants and bars to stop dine-in services and limited the number of people allowed to gather in hopes of slowing the spread of the coronavirus.
Cooper has a three-phase plan that gradually eases restrictions based on the state’s coronavirus trends that include hospitalizations, testing, tracing and positive cases.
North Carolina moved into Phase Two of Cooper’s reopening plan on May 22, which allows restaurants, retailers and salons to reopen at reduced capacity if they comply with social distancing measures.
Bars and gyms, however, remain closed.
Cooper and health officials have credited the stay-at-home orders with helping North Carolina “flatten the curve,” or prevent the state’s hospitals from becoming overwhelmed due to spikes in COVID-19 cases.
ReOpenNC first converged on downtown Raleigh April 14, near the Executive Mansion and the General Assembly, to demand Cooper rescind restrictions on businesses forced to shut down as the number of coronavirus cases in North Carolina climbed.
The protests gradually increased in size and drew counter-protesters. Most did not wear masks or social distance. There were a few arrests during that time, including Smith. In recent weeks, the size of the group has decreased.
Smith’s husband, Adam Smith, also marched alongside a group of armed protesters known as Blue Igloo on May 16.
Blue Igloo went viral in a series of photos by News & Observer photojournalist Travis Long that showed its members ordering sandwiches from Subway on Fayetteville Street with their shotguns, rocket launchers and pistols in plain view on May 9.
Adam Smith later published a Facebook video saying violence shouldn’t be ruled out in the fight against the government.
“Are we willing to kill people? Are we willing to lay our lives down? We have to say yes,” Adam Smith said in the video, which Ashley Smith reposted on the ReOpenNC Facebook page.
What’s next
On Friday, Smith touted the group as “inspiring the Pastors to rise up and sue” over Cooper’s statewide ban on mass gatherings of more than 10 people indoors, including places of worship.
A federal judge temporarily blocked those restrictions on May 16 in a decision Cooper said he would not appeal. ReOpenNC was not a party in the lawsuit.
“Now, hair salons, gyms, bars and others are lining up to file suit against Cooper and his Cabinet – with our support — for Cooper’s thoughtless actions that decimated this state’s economy,” Smith said Friday.
ReOpenNC scheduled a press conference Saturday at Patriot Axe Throwing in Hickory. The owner filed a lawsuit Thursday, saying North Carolina’s stay-at-home orders are violating his constitutional rights.
This story has been updated to include more context surrounding ReOpenNC and its leaders.
This story was originally published May 29, 2020 at 7:03 PM.
