Protesters blocked an access road to Mount Rushmore on Friday, hours before President Trump made a speech to start the Independence Day weekend.
According to the Associated Press, the protest group was mostly Native Americans protesting that the Black Hills of South Dakota were taken from the Lakota people against the treaty agreements.
Sheriff’s deputies and National Guard troops confront protesters near Mount Rushmore, SD
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A group parked three trucks on the other side of the road and took the tires from two of them to make it more difficult to remove them. Several protesters climbed into the trucks singing “Earth is back!” The police warned the protesters to disperse, but did not take any immediate action against them.
The sheriff’s office said attendees had been told to arrive early, so the obstacle should have been cleared. However, the Rapid City Journal reported that some motorists who had tickets to Friday night’s fireworks show were unable to pass the protests and were standing next to their cars watching the confrontation.
The Journal also reported that law enforcement officers with riot gear and members of the National Guard had arrived on the scene and declared an illegal assembly.
TRUMP TO ACCUSE THE ‘LEFT MOVEMENT’ OF THE ‘TOTALITARIAN BEHAVIOR’ IN THE RUSHMORE MOUNTING OBSERVATIONS
The news outlet reported that the lower bowl of the amphitheater where Trump was scheduled to speak at approximately 8:50 p.m. local time was full, but there were many empty seats on the upper level.
President Trump has been outspoken against recent protests taking place across the country, targeting historical monuments and statues that protesters feel represent a pattern of systematic racism in the U.S.
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Sources confirmed to Fox News on Friday that President Trump planned to address “totalitarian behavior that is completely foreign to American life” and the “culture of cancellation” that he believes is being pushed by the left.
It is also expected to emphasize the history of the United States as a “great and virtuous country.”
“The president can be expected to express strong support for the United States Army, the men and women of our police, and many of our precious principles and institutions that are attacked daily from the left,” said a senior official at the administration to Fox News in a statement. statement on Friday night.
This is a developing story; Check back for more updates.
The Associated Press and John Roberts of Fox News contributed to this report.
