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Louisville pastor says he was taken to ground by police during St. Matthews protest

Louisville pastor says he was taken to ground by police during St. Matthews protest
I'm joined now by Pastor Tim Finley Jr from the Kingdom Fellowship Life Center. First pastor, Of course. Thank you for joining us tonight. Earlier today you were pro testing in ST Mathews. It was peaceful there. Walk us through. What happened? Paint the picture of what happened to you. Absolutely. Well, we started protesting in ST Mathews because we understand that if we're going to see change and we're going to get the attention of the people that need to see it, we need to go outside of the areas that they're expecting. We got there, we were peacefully protest, and we were walk walking in the street. We were approached by the police department and I experienced what a lot of black people are experiencing today. Excessive force screaming in my face to resist arrest with stop resisting, which I was not doing. And then I was told that you're a big guy. What's happening and I think this is happening everywhere is that the police departments are police scene, uh, not behavior, but they're policing color, and they're but they're policing out of fear. And I think this has to stop because we continue to see these instances. We're seeing this picture now of what happened. There's video on the Internet on social media. Tell us again. You said you were pro testing. What exactly were you doing in that moment when things escalated to this situation? Well, he gave me a particular instruction. I disregarded the instruction. He wanted me to stand in a particular place. He then screamed out, Arrest him. They grabbed me on both arms immediately. When they grabbed me on both arms, they said to stop resisting. From that point forward, things escalated. And again, thinking about Briana Taylor thinking about Mr Makati were not given any sort of benefit of the doubt. And this will continue to happen, and we'll continue to show up in places that are not expected until there are structural and policy changes. What happened after this picture? Were you taken to jail where you cited? No, I had the benefit that many people don't have. I was in the back of the police car, and apparently they found out that I wasn't, um, just a regular citizen. And then I got apologies. They referred to me as Reverend Finley. Um, and the issue is there are many, many people in this city that don't have a name that don't have what I have and they don't get that benefit of the doubt. And I don't want this to be about me. I want this to be about Briana Taylor. I want this to be about amount are very. I want this to be about Mr Makati. What is your hope, pastor, for these protests? Because a lot of people don't understand why you're out there. What is your hope? Um, again, I want to see the way. The way that police department polices black people. I want to see that change. There is no reason to have a knee on my neck. There's no reason to have ah, high powered weapon on the back of my head. I'm obviously their protest ing. And I'm not looking for violence. They know that. But there is no reason for that. That is a knee jerk reaction that too many black people in Louisville and across the country deal with every single day. All right, Pastor, we do appreciate you taking time out of your night on coming by. We're glad that you're ok. Ah, hopefully it will continue tonight to be peaceful and we appreciate what you're doing. Thank you.
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Louisville pastor says he was taken to ground by police during St. Matthews protest
During a protest in St. Matthews, a Louisville pastor says he was met with excessive force from police officers.According to Pastor Tim Findley Jr. from The Kingdom Fellowship Life Center he was peacefully protesting in St. Matthews Monday afternoon, when an officer approached him, and screamed in his face. He was told to stand in a different spot, and when he didn't, he says the officer screamed "arrest him," and took him to the ground.Findley says when he was in the back of the police car, they found out he was a pastor and they apologized and let him go.Hear more from Findley Jr. in the player above.

During a protest in St. Matthews, a Louisville pastor says he was met with excessive force from police officers.

According to Pastor Tim Findley Jr. from The Kingdom Fellowship Life Center he was peacefully protesting in St. Matthews Monday afternoon, when an officer approached him, and screamed in his face.

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He was told to stand in a different spot, and when he didn't, he says the officer screamed "arrest him," and took him to the ground.

Findley says when he was in the back of the police car, they found out he was a pastor and they apologized and let him go.

Hear more from Findley Jr. in the player above.