Alabama boat fight: People are thrown into the water during a huge fight that breaks out in Riverfront Park
A video showing a group of white men assaulting a Black dock worker in Alabama has gone viral on social media.
The incident occurred after pontoon boats blocked the area where riverboats parked near Montgomery Riverfront Park on Saturday evening, reported WFSA’s Jasmine Williams.
Officers responded to the 200 Coosa Street block of the disturbance around 7 p.m. on Saturday, a spokesman for the Montgomery Police Department told Newsweek.
“At the scene, they found a large group of subjects engaged in a physical altercation. Several subjects have been detained and any charges are pending,” the spokesperson said.
The police department “acted quickly to arrest several reckless individuals for assaulting a man who was doing his job,” Montgomery Mayor Steven L. Reed said in a statement shared on X, formerly Twitter. “A warrant has been signed and justice will be served.”
Reed added: “This is an unfortunate incident that should never have happened. As our police department investigates these intolerable acts, we must never become desensitized to violence of any kind in our community. Those who choose acts of violence will be held accountable by our criminal justice system.”
Videos shared on social media show the events leading up to the brawl, which occurred along racial lines.
In one of the videos posted on X, which has been viewed more than 3 million times, a woman on a riverboat can be heard talking about a dispute over a parking space on the pier.
The black man, reportedly a wharf worker, was seen near a pontoon boat parked at the wharf.
“That guy in white is… he got off our boat to go over there to move the black pontoon boat himself because the people who parked there were told not to leave it there and they left it there, so he just pushed the switch off,” said the woman recording it.
Moments later, the black man is approached by a shirtless white man in gray shorts.
The pair are seen talking for some time, while another white man stands nearby. Another white man—no red shirt and shorts—is seen running toward them.
The black man seems to be continuing to explain the situation, and a white woman is seen joining them. The black man and one of the shirtless men can be seen gesturing as they speak.
The crowd in the riverboats could be heard chanting “move****, move aside” as two shirtless white men spoke near the boat.
The exchange between the black man and the white man appears to be heated, with the former seen repeatedly gesturing with his hand.
The black man was seen pacing back and forth, then continued talking to one of the white men while pointing towards the boat.
Another man is seen approaching the black man to speak. As they spoke, the man in the gray shorts lunged forward and seemed to smack the black man in the face.
The pair are seen fighting for a few seconds before a white man and white woman appear to try to break it up.
Seconds later, however, two other shirtless white men—including one in red shorts—are seen joining the fight.
Two other shirtless white men then joined in, helping to tackle the black man to the ground and beat him. They were then joined by other shirtless white men, who were also piling up.
As the fight progresses, one of the shirtless white men is seen hitting another white man who appears to be trying to stop the fight.
Two white women are seen, and a woman in a red shirt appears to be trying to keep one of the white men away from the fight.
alabama boat fight videos
Within seconds, a fight broke out between the group of black people and two white men and a white woman who were on board, and another white man and white woman on the docks.
A number of officers were seen arriving and trying to break up the brawl which lasted a few moments longer before it subsided. Officers are then seen handcuffing those involved.
