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Street preacher draws crowd and police in Broadway/Pike pepper spray disturbance

A sign-toting street preacher who didn’t find a receptive audience for his message of hellfire and damnation abruptly ended his sermon in a cloud of pepper spray and a rush of Seattle Police at Broadway and Pike Thursday afternoon.

According to Seattle Police, the preacher had drawn a hostile crowd to the corner in front of the Harvard Market QFC where he called 911 around 2:30 PM to report he had just sprayed pepper spray in the face of a man he said tried to grab his camera.

Police arrived and settled the disturbance, separating the photographing preacher from any further debate over the nature of sin, and calling Seattle Fire to treat the man who had been sprayed.

There were no additional significant injuries and no reported arrests.

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caphillguy
caphillguy
5 years ago

Good. These people don’t belong in this neighborhood.

Paul
Paul
5 years ago
Reply to  caphillguy

It’s a free country. Your statement is an example of intolerance from the left.

Max
Max
5 years ago
Reply to  Paul

We can disagree and still love each other, unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist.

Brian
Brian
5 years ago
Reply to  Paul

If you had some left wing weirdo go stand outside a VA hospital in Texas and shout out that all Veterans are “baby killers” you’d see some pretty good examples of “the intolerant right.”

This guy obviously set out his day to troll people and some jackass with pepper spray trolled him right back. Obviously not the right thing to do but personally, my first reaction is “meh, he pretty much got what is to be expected.” I’d have the same reaction if the ideology was reversed; go out of your way to be a major dick and people will be major dicks right back to you.

rageofage
rageofage
5 years ago

Cap Hill needs some periodic sweeps of its sidewalks.

Phil E.
Phil E.
5 years ago

Beardy preacher dude needs a girlfriend, or a job.

Prost Seattle
Prost Seattle
5 years ago

His resume has been submitted to the powers that be in DC.

JayH
JayH
5 years ago

This isn’t Hell? Donald Trump is President. Where am I then?

Max
Max
5 years ago
Reply to  JayH

You’re in an alternate universe from the one you were in before that happened. Others were lucky enough to transport to the alternate universe in which Maxine Waters is President.

JayH
JayH
5 years ago
Reply to  Max

Plausible

Poopy goopy
Poopy goopy
5 years ago

I’m paging through a copy of the Bible and I haven’t yet been able to find the passage that says “Thou shalt pepper-spray thy neighbor if he reaches for thy camera.” All I’m finding is stuff about forgiving those who trespass against us and turning the other cheek…

Max
Max
5 years ago
Reply to  Poopy goopy

You clearly lack the ability to balance being a fundamentalist with reading between the lines. If you look closer you see that “turning the other cheek” can actually say “spraying the other face”. You just have to hate change and humanity and diversity and use your imagination.

zeebleoop
5 years ago
Reply to  Poopy goopy

i found some stuff about “thou shalt not steal”.

don’t try and grab someone’s property and you won’t get pepper sprayed. turn the other cheek and don’t grab at a guy’s camera.

regardless of this guy’s message, nothing gives anyone, except the authorities, the right to touch him or his stuff. just like you wouldn’t want jackbooted right-wing neo-nazis touching you.

the rights you ask for have to be the same you give to even the most horrible of enemy. otherwise’ that just makes us hypocrites. right?

Jim98122x
Jim98122x
5 years ago
Reply to  zeebleoop

Exactly. Even if he’s a mondo-asshole, he gets to be a mondo-asshole. Freedom of speech includes speech that you hate hearing.

Max
Max
5 years ago
Reply to  zeebleoop

Not specifically about this incident, but threats (even if only speech) can potentially be ruled to be malicious harassment, which is a crime (such as a verbal death threat shouted at me based on perceived sexual orientation). “Free speech” has its limits. https://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=9A.36.080

Adam
Adam
5 years ago

Typical page out of the playbook for the extreme right these days. Incite anger by spewing hate speech, claim victimhood when you get pissed off people responding.

peep
peep
5 years ago
Reply to  Adam

The playbook works for both sides of the aisle when it comes to extremists.

Jim98122x
Jim98122x
5 years ago
Reply to  Adam

True, Adam, but we have to be smarter than they are, and not take the bait. They’re not that complicated, we don’t need to fall for it. We should do silly things like having a chorus line of homos doing the YMCA dance and drawing all attention off the clown until they give up and leave.

Rocko
Rocko
5 years ago

Dude thinks the First Amendment applies on Capitol Hill.