Proud Boys Showed Up To A Pride Month Library Event But Were Met With A “Human Shield” Of LGBTQ Supporters

Jesse Ringness, a documentary journalist who is running for state office as a Democrat, said that they were there to intimidate.

Sisters Josie and Mallie, who asked that their last names not be published out of fear they might be targeted, said the militia members began making crude and racist comments in an attempt to get the counterprotesters to join them.

They began to call us pedophiles. They called other women whores and were fat-shaming people. It was obvious that they wanted to cause some kind of violence. They wanted to make us angry so they could use it against us.

Mallie was thinking about how scared little kids would be seeing masked people. It would be frightening to walk out in the library.

Four counterprotesters who spoke with the news said they tried not to pay attention to the rhetoric because they were afraid of inflaming the situation. They wanted to counteract the hate with love.

The kids booed and yelled at each other when they walked out of Pride storytime. We cheered louder because we wanted to. People walked in front of the kids to prevent them from seeing them.

The fight was not about fighting the other side. It was not about getting a lot of attention. Ringness said it was all about supporting those who were there for a free event. It's really disappointing to see a public library holding an event for families with guns. What did the militiamen intend to do with their weapons? I don't know what to think.

The McKinney Police Department was nearby and keeping an eye on things to make sure the event was peaceful.

There were no arrests, but police issued one citation for assault by contact to someone who pushed another person, which appeared to be caught on camera.

The mother who took her sons to the event said she was uneasy by the right-wing protesters. During the storytime event, her oldest son wanted to go to the library, but she insisted that he stay close to his mom.

There's nothing you can do to prepare you for seeing armed hate groups next to your children.

The chants of hate were drowned out by cheers from the crowd. A person walked them to their car and used an umbrella to block out signs. She said she was grateful, but also sad that people had to protect the event.

Protesters held up signs about protecting kids, but it was members of the LGBTQ community and allies that protected my brown boys from these hate groups. On Saturday, they were the targets. They wouldn't flinch when they saw hatred staring at them.