Montgomery Riverfront Brawl One Year Later, X Celebrates #FadeInTheWater
Written by djfrosty on August 5, 2024
Source: X / x
Time stops for no one, and it’s already been a year since the infamous Montgomery Riverfront Brawl that featured out of pocket white people getting their proper comeuppance. What would be Black Twitter, before Phony Stark ruined it, is celebrating the day by reminiscing on the hilarious memes the incident spawned.
In case you need a quick history lesson, on August 5, 2023, a group of white boaters put hands on a Black riverboat co-captain on the Montgomery riverfront after inquiring why they weren’t moving when his boat was scheduled to dock. What ensued was retaliation that included a co-worker swimming to help (he was dubbed “Black Aquaman”), numerous work peers and civilians uniting like The Avengers to have his back and various people who overall needed to mind their business catching fades.
Also in the mix was a hat being tossed to the heavens as a signal that the time for discuss was over and folding chairs being weaponized. The resulting memes and play by play had social media in a chokehold for days after. It was a cultural flashpoint—the theme of race relations weaved throughout thanks to this nation’s history of people of color having to grin and bear disrespect and white privilege, but not on THAT day. Even Rupert Murdoch’s own The Washington Post has recently noted that the day has become an unofficial holiday.
Fortunately, there were no serious injuries. Although, the woman who got cracked by a folding chair may disagree. But, she reportedly refused to press charges. Respect.
And as far as the legal ramifications, while various people in the boat that initiated the ruckus pleaded guilty and paid out various fines, Dameion Pickett, the co-captain of the Harriott II, who was assaulted, had the charges against him dropped.
So on the anniversary of the glorious day, let us reminisce with current and past reactions in the gallery.