Harrisburg mayor commends police commissioner for role in de-escalating George Floyd protests

George Floyd Protests Harrisburg

Harrisburg Police Commissioner Thomas Carter talking with protesters during a Black Lives Matter Demonstration at the Capitol to protest the murder of George Floyd. May 30, 2020 | Becky Metrick

As night fell along Front Street on Saturday night, protesters and police became eerily quiet while they faced off, with the threat of tear gas hanging over everyone’s heads.

Harrisburg Police Commissioner Thomas Carter walked up to the protesters repeatedly, talking with them, and after about 20 minutes, police agreed to leave. The protesters celebrated, then themselves dispersed.

On Sunday, Mayor Eric Papenfuse credited Carter and Harrisburg police with not just de-escalating tensions in that moment, but also throughout the day of protests.

The Black Lives Matter protests were in response to the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. That officer, Derek Chauvin, has been arrested on murder and manslaughter charges.

Citing protesting near Capitol steps around 4 p.m., Papenfuse said “you will notice that Commissioner Carter actually stands between the row of police officers, and the individual protesters at that time, in an effort -- walking back and forth -- talking to individual protesters trying to calm people down. Trying to encourage dialogue and discussion.”

Papenfuse said while the early afternoon protests were peaceful, there was a shift in tone in the afternoon which they believe was led by residents from outside the city.

He talked about a period when protesters were displaying a lot of anger and “hate speech” which he felt was trying to bait the police, but he said the police instead just backed up, again and again, which he felt de-escalated that situation. Carter was present and talking to protesters the whole time.

“He was a model of what I would hope every Harrisburg citizen would recognize, which is that Harrisburg police is committed to peaceful protests and committed to non-violent resolution of disagreements, and is a model for the city,” Papenfuse said.

When it came to those last moments of the evening, Papenfuse said Carter was “absolutely committed to making sure that the protesters would get home safely."

For his part, Carter said he doesn’t agree with damaging the city, but he knows where the pain and anger are coming from.

“I do understand. I would like to say to all of the young people out there, I feel your pain because we have a history of being treated differently,” Carter said. “Me, speaking as a black man in this country... I had the same fears that you have right now.”

But he emphasized the need for peaceful protests.

“We’ve been up for hours, now we’re expecting more demonstrations in the city. My people are tired but again we will support the mission of a peaceful protest,” Carter said. “Our mission is to protect life and property. So if anybody, you know, wants to come in, wants to demonstrate peacefully, we are all for that.”

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.