Tulsa Police take protester Sheila Buck into custody near an entrance to a security checkpoint for a rally with President Donald Trump at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on June 20, 2020. Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images
Tulsa Police Department officers arrested a woman wearing an “I Can’t Breathe” T-shirt outside the Trump rally in Oklahoma on charges of trespassing.
Local news outlet Tulsa World reported that the woman was taken into custody outside the safety barricade in front of the arena in Tulsa, where President Donald Trump is scheduled to speak at a rally later Saturday.
Tulsa World reporter Mike Simons posted a video of the arrest, which shows the woman telling someone off camera: “They’re arresting me for this, they’re saying I trespassed.”
Tulsa Police ask Sheila Buck to leave as she sits at the entrance to a security checkpoint for a rally with President Donald Trump at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on June 20, 2020. Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images
The protester, who in a separate tweet was identified by Simons as Sheila Buck, was locked in a standoff with officers for over five minutes before police took her away in handcuffs, TMZ reported.
A video posted by the Twitter account @kucukmoskovali showed the woman prior to her arrest walking along a column of people lining up outside the BOK Center, where the rally will take place.
Tulsa Police take protester Sheila Buck into custody near an entrance to a security checkpoint for a rally with President Donald Trump at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on June 20, 2020. Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images
Supporters of the president were filling streets Saturday around the stadium where Trump will hold his first rally in months, ready to welcome him back to the campaign trail.
Trump is also expected to speak at an outdoor event to be held inside a perimeter of tall metal barriers that were put up around the BOK Center. Some of the attendees have been camped near the venue since early in the week.
Protests were planned for Saturday and some community leaders in Tulsa have expressed concern about violence.
Trump officials have alleged a double standard from critics in the media and elsewhere, pointing to celebrations of mass protests in the wake of the police-custody death of George Floyd as the same critics denounce Trump rallies or anti-lockdown protests by typically conservative activists.
“While we appreciate the great concern for our rally goers, you should exhibit that same concern for the protesters who are out there not socially distancing in many cases,” White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters at the White House on Friday.
Tom Ozimek
Reporter
Tom Ozimek is a senior reporter for The Epoch Times. He has a broad background in journalism, deposit insurance, marketing and communications, and adult education.
