ATLANTA — A video of one officer speaking with protesters in Atlanta during the earlier part of the day has touched the hearts of people on both sides of the protest line.
Officer Z. Murphy is seen on video responding to one protester about how he handled a situation earlier in the afternoon - and how the very thing they are protesting affects his own family.
"I do, alright, I have a son who's 31, I have a son who's 15, alright, and I have to have these conversations with him all the time," he said. "... What was going on up here was wrong, that's why we brought it to a stop. The loudspeaker, the yakking, and the yapping."
He and other officers were in the midst of the protest groups at this point.
"We said pause, let these people remain here, let them stay on the street, let them express their grievances because you have a right to be p***** off," he said.
But a protester countered that "over there, they don't feel the same way."
"That's why I told them to shut the f*** up," the officer replied.
The protesters responded that he needed to give his energy to other officers with the Atlanta Police Department.
"One at a time, my brother, one at a time," he said.
The message appears to have been recorded during the daylight hours when the initial mostly peaceful protest occurred. Since that time, the protest has taken a more chaotic turn with some burning objects, busting windows, and even smashing the windshields of police cars.
However, that's not how things started. And as this video shows, even in a time of crisis, people manage to find ways to show they're more alike than different.
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