A North Carolina man pleaded guilty for threatening to burn a Black church in Virginia just days after they held a George Floyd vigil.
John Malcolm Bareswill is now facing a maximum of 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. According to a press release, the man called New Hope Baptist Church, which has a predominantly Black congregation, and made racially charged remarks. He also threatened to set the church on fire.
Bareswill made the call on June 7, which was just a few days after one of the church’s leaders participated in a public prayer vigil and peaceful protest on behalf of Floyd. He pleaded guilty to criminal information charging a telephonic threat to use fire to kill, injure, or intimidate any individual, or unlawfully to damage or destroy a building. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Nov. 12.
Earlier this month, REVOLT reported that protesters asked a white woman to leave a demonstration after she yelled out a racial slur at a hologram event in honor of Floyd.
The incident took place in Richmond, Virginia and was caught on camera. The unidentified woman yelled out the N-word multiple times and told the person who recorded her, “This is my city. Look at this n*gger shit.”
Floyd was killed on May 25 in Minneapolis, Minnesota following allegations that he tried to use a counterfeit $20 bill to buy cigarettes from a local store. Police officers were called to the scene and Floyd was killed while he was being restrained.
Officer Derek Chauvin planted his knee onto Floyd’s neck for almost nine minutes as he yelled out, “I can’t breathe” and called out for his mother, who was deceased.
On Monday (Aug. 3), the full boydcam footage of his arrest was released to the public. In the footage, it shows the moments leading up to his death, including Floyd begging for the police officers not to shoot him after one of the officers pulled a gun out on him.