- Shots were fired at a protest in Albuquerque, New Mexico when anti-racist protesters clashed with a heavily armed right-wing militia.
- Protesters had been trying to pull down a statue shots came as activists attempted to pull down a statue of Juan de Oñate, a notoriously cruel Spanish conquistador.
- Four shots could be heard on a live stream posted to Facebook, with the person broadcasting the video attributing the fire to the militia.
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At least one person was shot after anti-racist protesters clashed with a heavily armed right-wing militia in Albuquerque, New Mexico, according to local media and others at the scene.
Four shots could be heard on a Facebook live stream posted by a local activist who attributed the fire to the militia. The shots came as activists attempted to pull down a statue of Juan de Oñate, a notoriously cruel Spanish conquistador.
Local news channel KOB4 reported that at least one person was wounded. The Albuquerque Police Department confirmed that a "male subject was shot" and that officers were securing the scene."
In a later statement, the department said it used "chemical irritants and flash bangs to protect officers and detain invididuals involved in the shooting." It said that multiple people "were disarmed and taken into custody for questioning."
We just obtained video of the shooting. pic.twitter.com/yjB6NHdKe2
— Megan Abundis (@meganrabundis) June 16, 2020
The Oñate statue, outside the Albuquerque Museum in Old Town, was being guarded by members of a volunteer militia, which calls itself the New Mexico Civil Guard. The group has been a regular and heavily armed sight at recent Black Lives Matter protests, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported.
According to KOB4, police arrived at the scene after the shooting and detained anyone with a visible weapon.
Earlier in the day, another statue of Oñate was removed in northern New Mexico. The one in Albuquerque is also set to be replaced.
As The New York Times noted, Oñate was infamous for cruelty, "even by the standards of his time," with Spanish authorities eventually barring him from the territory of New Mexico.
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