Murphy, Peterson apologize for apartment protest | Local News
SALEM — The door to Naumkeag Ordinary was padlocked Tuesday, signaling the apparent closing of the small downtown restaurant. Hours later, a protest on behalf of one of the restaurant’s workers triggered a police response at the business owner’s apartment.
On Wednesday, two City Council candidates — Ward 2’s Brendan Murphy and Ward 3’s Lisa Peterson — have apologized for their role in the event.
The protest centered around an employee who alleges the business owes her $1,500 in unpaid wages. She was supported by the Lynn Worker Center and North Shore Labor Council, according to Katie Cohen, an organizer with the council. The restaurant’s owner, Matt Brady, did not return calls seeking comment.
At 7 p.m. on Tuesday, a crowd of a couple dozen people gathered at the Washington Street restaurant carrying signs targeting Brady and accusing him of wage theft. Eventually, as they realized Brady was not there, they headed for his apartment at 11 Turner St. Brady lives on the second floor. The protesters shouted at the apartment with a bullhorn loud enough to be heard around the neighborhood.
The windows of the apartment were dark, however, and protesters who had entered the apartment building determined Brady wasn’t home after knocking on his door for a few minutes. The crowd hung around for some time as daylight faded.
At about 8 p.m., police were called on a report of a crowd blocking public access outside of the multi-story apartment building.
As photos of the protest circulated on social media, residents were quick to point out the participation of both Murphy and Peterson, criticizing them for taking the protest to the owner’s apartment.
A couple hours after the incident, Murphy posted an apology on his campaign’s Facebook page. By Wednesday morning, Peterson also apologized publicly.
When asked how he ended up in the group, Murphy said he was attending a City Council candidate forum on Derby Street when “a friend who was involved with the labor community told me about what was going on, and a brief synopsis of how this lady hadn’t been getting her money for a while.”
Murphy left the debate during the final question and started heading to Naumkeag, he said. Along the way, a text message informed him that the location had changed to Brady’s apartment.
“I was like, ‘OK, apparently the plan was updated, with the closure of the business,’” Murphy said. “The original plan was not to go to the apartment.”
Having gone to the apartment, Murphy admitted that going there was “a bad call” without question.
Peterson, meanwhile, was proud to participate in the rally — as originally billed.
“I will always support small businesses and understand their vital importance in our local economy in Salem,” Peterson said. “In the same respect, I am proud of my convictions to stand beside the people of Salem so their voices may be heard in City Hall.”
At the same time, Peterson made the conscious decision to rally outside the apartment — an apartment that, apparently, Brady wasn’t even in at the time.
“I recognize that my participation at the subsequent demonstration outside the employer’s home was excessive,” she said, “and for that (I) apologize to him and our community.”
At the end of the day, however, Murphy and Peterson weren’t doing anything inherently illegal, according to Salem police Chief Mary Butler.
“Obviously, people have the right to free speech. Everyone is aware of that, and they have the right to assembly,” Butler said. “It has to be peaceful and, obviously, it can’t be at all times and all places.”
The rally in front of the apartment was close to crossing that line, according to Butler. It seemed sidewalks were blocked, and the time was getting late.
“I don’t think this one was totally outside the scope of the hour situation, being that it was actually reported just before 8 p.m.,” Butler said, “but it was probably starting to creep into a time where, being in a close neighborhood, it would’ve been a little problematic.”
Contact Salem reporter Dustin Luca at 978-338-2523 or DLuca@salemnews.com. Follow him on Facebook at facebook.com/dustinluca or on Twitter @DustinLucaSN.
||||
Comments
Post a Comment