Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin has issued a curfew for the city starting at 10 p.m. in response to protests planned this evening.

According to a press statement from the city, two protests were planned for downtown Friday in response to the shooting of Walter Wallace Jr., a Philidelphia man suffering from mental illness gunned down by police earlier this week.

The mayor has instituted curfews ahead of nearly every demonstration in the city since May, when a peaceful Black Lives Matter turned violent after police deployed teargas. Dozens of downtown businesses had windows smashed and fires were set to businesses and trash bins. Since then, businesses downtown have boarded up windows ahead of demonstrations to avoid damage. 

“Raleigh is and always will be a place where people can exercise their rights and have their voices heard,” Baldwin said in a statement Friday. “As Mayor, I take the responsibility of keeping our community safe seriously.”

The curfew will extend through 5 a.m. Saturday. 

“This is a difficult time in our history and it is going to take all of us working together, listening to one another, and being intentional about finding connection if we are truly going to emerge from these trying moments as better people and a better Raleigh,” Baldwin said.

Organizer Zainab Baloch, a former mayoral candidate, warned activists to avoid Friday night’s demonstrations.

Follow Raleigh News Editor Leigh Tauss on Twitter or send an email to ltauss@indyweek.com. 

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