Three weekends of protests in Philadelphia | Morning Newsletter
And, how Black Lives Matter is affecting Philly’s restaurants.
The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
This weekend marks the third in a row for protests in Philadelphia in support of Black Lives Matter after the killing of George Floyd. Hundreds turned out around the city yesterday for several different demonstrations. But amid the social and political upheaval, white supremacists and other extremists groups are using these protests and the pandemic to amplify their message.
We also chatted with reporter Samantha Melamed about how the movement is possibly changing Philly’s restaurant industry.
— Lauren Aguirre (@laurencaguirre, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
The week ahead
This Saturday was the third one in a row for Black Lives Matter protests in Philadelphia. Hundreds of people turned out across the city. About 200, including kids, parents and teachers, showed up to the Children’s March for Justice in Queen Village. Hundreds more gathered at the site of the 1985 MOVE bombing in West Philadelphia and at the future location for Philly Police Headquarters on North Broad Street to call for defunding of the Police Department.
A group of South Philly residents yesterday surrounded the Christopher Columbus statue in Marconi Plaza. My colleagues reported that about 100 people were milling about, some with baseball bats and at least two with guns. One man said the group was “protecting the statue from these rioters who want to take it down.” In recent weeks, statues of him in Camden, Richmond, Va., and St. Paul, Minn. have been removed. Despitegrowing resistance to Columbus in the last several decades, those who gathered yesterday consider him an emblem of their heritage and say any attempt to erase him would be a “hate crime.”
Defunding the police has been a common demand from protesters against police brutality and systemic racism. Here’s more on what that means and what it would look like in Philadelphia.
Amid protests for reopening the economy and against police brutality that have swept across the country, white supremacists and other extremist groups have found opportunities to amplify their message. They’re using tactics experts say these groups have relied on for years.
Eight more Pennsylvania counties will move to the “green” reopening phase this week. They will join 46 others. Philly and its surrounding counties will remain “yellow” for now.
In the yellow phase, places like gyms and zoos aren’t allowed to reopen. But when they do, a workout or a trip to see some tigers will probably look different.
This week’s most popular stories
Behind the story with Samantha Melamed
Each week we go behind the scenes with one of our reporters or editors to discuss their work and the challenges they face along the way. This week we chat with Samantha Melamed about her recent story on how the Black Lives Matter movement is affecting Philadelphia’s restaurant industry.
You don’t usually cover Philadelphia restaurants. How did you find this story?
Michael Klein, who is seemingly omniscient when it comes to Philadelphia’s restaurant scene, first flagged the trend of restaurateurs floundering to address the Black Lives Matter movement. Then, The Inquirer’s (relatively) new food editor, Jamila Robinson, recognized that one reason they seemed to be having such a difficult time with it was that many have not dealt with the racism that is already baked into the restaurant industry, as it is in so many other facets of American life. Because I’ve covered food and bars for The Inquirer, as well as issues of race and identity, Jamila asked me to explore the larger story here.
What is something new you learned while reporting this story?
Blew Kind from Franny Lou’s Porch in Kensington really shed light for me on how difficult it is to be a black business owner right now — trying to keep staff safe while people were coming by her cafe and yelling, “White lives matter!”, not trusting the police to protect her business, and at the same time trying to create her own community safety plan so that she would not be part of embroiling others in the criminal-legal system unnecessarily.
What was one of most challenging parts of covering this story?
A lot of chefs and restaurant owners, including people I’ve interviewed before, did not want to talk to me, or did not get back to me at all. And staff generally were unwilling to speak on the record, if at all — an understandable reluctance given that the job market in the restaurant industry has been decimated and will likely be incredibly fragile as we get back to work. Overall, I think it’s clear that this is the beginning of a much longer conversation, one that many people still don’t have the words for.
Is there anything you think will stay with you from this story?
The black chefs and restaurant owners I interviewed really made me think about what the media’s role has been in reinforcing stereotypes, overlooking black chefs or failing to recognize the place of Southern and soul food traditions in the culinary canon. We all need to examine our coverage and our role in structural racism.
Why did you become a reporter?
I have always loved that my role is to listen, to learn more about people’s lives that are so different from my own, to share their stories and translate them in the hope that they will resonate with a wider audience. Over the years, one thing I have come to value greatly is that it is one of the rare jobs that is always for truth.
What is one thing you wish more people knew about your job?
Careful reporting takes time — we need your patience! But we also need you to keep pushing us to do the difficult stories. It takes sources with the courage to speak up, but you can always talk to us off the record about how to move forward safely with delicate stories.
Email Samantha Melamed at smelamed@inquirer.com and follow her on Twitter at @samanthamelamed.
Through Your Eyes | #OurPhilly
This shot is very striking. Love a good Philly skyline shot. Thanks for sharing, @shot_by_jim!
Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we’ll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout-out!
Can you go on vacation this summer during the pandemic?
After months of stay-at-home orders and sheltering in place, some of us really need a vacation. But while the stay-at-home order has been lifted in Pennsylvania, and you technically can travel, it’s important to think about whether you should. While you can mitigate the risk of getting sick, you can’t completely eliminate it. Here’s more on what to know if you decide to travel this summer.
What we’re …
Eating: al fresco, or outside. Outdoor dining is back in the city as part of the yellow phase of reopening. Here are some places to go out to eat, carefully.
Watching: Artemis Fowl. Based on the best-selling book series, this new movie adaptation hit Disney+ Friday. Here are some other things to watch this weekend.
Listening to: Norah Jones. Her new album is out and my colleague Dan DeLuca writes that her quietly satisfying music is a great antidote to rattled nerves that you might have in the middle of current events.
Comment of the week
“There are like three dozen streets throughout Philadelphia we should have done this with already, and the pandemic recovery makes it even more important.” — orange you glad, on how West Chester’s popular Gay Street will close to cars and allow outside dining.
Your Daily Dose of | Philly protest moments
During the pain and powerful protests in recent weeks, Philadelphia still found a way to be Philly. What makes this city great has always been the people, and when the people of Philadelphia are challenged, they always rise to the occasion with their spirit fully intact. From tension-breaking scenes to inspirational ones, we’ve gathered up 10 of the most Philly moments from protests in the city.