Black community leaders plea to have input in plans for Memorial Day safety
A small group of community activists, including the president of a local branch of the NAACP, gathered in front of Myrtle Beach City Hall on Thursday to stress the importance of inclusion as Grand Strand officials search for ways to improve safety.
But Mickey James, president of the Myrtle Beach branch of the NAACP, and other community members said while officials are working to improve safety during Memorial Day weekend, crime and violence need to be addressed year-round. James and the other leaders said city officials is not involving them enough in the effort.
“Bikefest is a small issue,” The Rev. Jerry Falk of Mt. Pisgah Missionary Baptist Church in Conway said. “Ending Bikefest will not stop the lawlessness that happens in Myrtle Beach or the other cities.”
Three people died and seven were injured in eight shootings on Ocean Boulevard in Myrtle Beach during Memorial Day weekend. Several thousand people were in town that weekend to attend Atlantic Beach Bikefest, Military Appreciation Days or to take advantage of the holiday weekend. Bikefest began in the 1980s as a time for black motorcyclists to enjoy Memorial Day weekend.
Gov. Nikki Haley has called for an end Bikefest but Atlantic Beach Mayor Jake Evans has said the town has no plans to do so.
The violence has led to the formation of two task forces and several closed-door meetings where Myrtle Beach officials have discussed safety and security plans for next year’s Memorial Day holiday.
In the nearly three months that have passed since the shootings, James and other black community leaders say they have only been called on once to discuss future plans.
“You had a chance to bring us to the table and you wouldn’t even do it,” James said.
James also decried the fact that there were no city or county officials present at the press conference.
“They knew this was today,” he said. “They want us to stand with them at their press conference, but they don‘t want to stand with us.”
Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes said he had no comment.
Falk said having opinions from a diverse group of people will help deal with issues as well as improve things in the community.
“One of the key ways to heal a community is inclusion,” Falk said.
On Wednesday, a handful of black pastors and community leaders together watched YouTube videos associated with Bikefest.
One video showed what residents have called disrespectful behavior, one showed what turned into a street party that shut down traffic for about 45 minutes and one showed a fight and a portion of a May 24 shooting that killed three people and injured one.
“There’s nothing that occurred that day that I’ve not seen in life,” said community activist Bennie Swans, who grew up in Philadelphia.
Swans said most of the things that happen during Memorial Day weekend and also happen during spring break and throughout the year – and in most cases the offenders are only a few of the many people who travel to the area.
“It was clear that they were trying to devastate us with the morality of it,” Swans said. “They wanted us to sign on to their plans to end [Bikefest]. ... I did not detect anyone buying in to that. Not because we don’t want to see the end of the violence, but we want to push a plan to deal with a number of issues.”
James said he hopes to establish a group of citizens who gather at City Hall on Mondays sometime in the next few months for a growing trend called moral Mondays.
Moral Mondays is a grassroots rally that began in North Carolina, organized by the state’s president of the NAACP as “civil disobedience” protests to address issues with voting rights and cuts to social programs such as unemployment benefits.
This story was originally published August 21, 2014 at 10:57 PM with the headline "Black community leaders plea to have input in plans for Memorial Day safety."