Editorial: When protests become riots

A protest can be a volatile situation.

With tensions high and nerves raw, it doesn’t take much to strike a spark and have anger or pain or righteous indignation flash over to the violent unpredictability of a confrontation or from there to a riot.

That makes people who show up to events like the Black Lives Matter protests prepared to light a match so dangerous.

On Friday, Allegheny County sheriffs arrested Matthew Michanowicz, 52, of Pittsburgh’s Duquesne Heights neighborhood. Authorities say he placed a backpack with homemade bombs in the Downtown area on May 31.

That was the day after local protests over the death of George Floyd in a confrontation with four Minneapolis police officers turned into a riot with burning cars and broken windows.

At Michanowicz’ home, investigators say they found ten more backpacks, as well as the materials that went into constructing the devices.

In a separate case, Brian Bartels, 20, of Shaler was arrested and accused of escalating the May 30 incident.

“His backpack loaded with rocks and spray paint, Bartels came to (that) protest in Pittsburgh to incite violence,” U.S. Attorney Scott Brady said. “Bartels’s actions turned an otherwise peaceful protest into a violent riot.”

The two men — whose reasons might be wildly different — are part of the most dangerous aspect of a protest. With so many people participating, you can’t assume everyone has the same goals. Some might want to turn up the volume on the kind of peaceful gatherings most of the Pittsburgh area protests have been. Some might have other ideas altogether.

“I hope that any organizers or protesters who are participating consistent with the First Amendment will help identify and stop agitators who seek to manipulate their protest for violent ends,” Brady said. “Rest assured that we stand ready to prosecute such provocateurs federally.”

A protest doesn’t need help to burst into flame. It needs to be blanketed with fire suppressant to keep the flames at bay.

Like a real fire, the metaphoric one of a protest brings heat and light to an issue. It draws attention and can bring important things to a boiling point. But we have to be wary of getting burned.