Ted Nugent, Centreville man spar over Black Lives Matter comment during rally
CENTREVILLE, Mich. — Rock star Ted Nugent made controversial comments about Black Lives Matter that stirred up the crowd of nearly hundred people who attended Friday's political rally in Centreville.
Nugent appeared in downtown Centreville as part of the Jack Coleman Presents Ted & Shemane Nugent Constitution Tour, featuring various Michigan Republican candidates for elected office.
Nugent provoked a reaction when he brought up Black Lives Matter during his speech.
“Aren’t there any BLM punks who want to come up and harass me?” Nugent told a crowd of supporters Friday.
Moments later, Jalen Brown, a Centreville resident, approached the stage and addressed Nugent.
“What’s wrong with Black lives Matter?” Brown asked Nugent.
Nugent replied, "Black Lives don't give a s--- about Black lives, they're standing by while Blacks are slaughter each other."
Nugent went onto to call Black Lives Matter a terrorist organization.
Brown said the comment set him off.
"As soon as he said Black Lives Matter was a terrorist organization, I took that personally,” Brown said,
Brown took the microphone and then addressed the crowd, chanting "Black lives matter too."
He told the crowd the Black Lives Matter movement was here to remind the country how Black people were mistreated throughout history.
"We're not here by choice." Brown said.
One man in the crowd yelled, "We didn't bring you."
Several dozen people began to chant "USA" and "All Lives Matter" and verbally berated Brown as he left the stage area.
The Centreville Village Council President Brandy Eckert apologized for how Brown was treated by some village residents, "The actions don’t represent the views of the village," Eckert said.
Organizers said the Constitution Day event in downtown Centreville was a family friendly event to celebrate the signing of the U.S. Constitution.
During his remarks, Nugent said Michigan joined New York, New Jersey, California and Illinois as "the most rotten, obnoxious, embarrassing states in the nation."
"We are not the Great Lakes state anymore, we are an embarrassment," Nugent said.
The rocker also called Gov. Gretchen Whitmer a tyrant during his afternoon speech. Nugent has previously called Whitmer a tyrant several times previously.
A spokesperson for Whitmer declined to respond to Nugent's comments.
Nugent also encouraged the crowd to demand accountability from elected officials in Washington D.C. and across the state.
"We need to raise hell and demand constitutional accountability from elected employees," he said.
The turnout was estimated at around 100 people, far lower than the 600 people organizer Jack Coleman said he anticipated would show up.
- Rally concerns: Centreville schools to dismiss early because of rally featuring Ted Nugent
Centreville Public Schools canceled school for the day beginning at 11:30 a.m. due to concerns over nearby road closures and crowds being near school property.
Several Republican candidates for state office spoke at the event, voicing their support for the second amendment and anti-mask mandates.
Some observers like Brown said at times speakers at the rally went off-topic.
“I love the Constitution, I love the rights it should stand for. There are people who are taking those and misconstruing them and taking them in a different direction than what it should be,” Brown said.
Other attendees like Jackie Roberts of Lapper, said she was excited to travel across the state to attend the event.
"When I found out they were having a a celebration about the constitution, I had to be there," she said.
The Centreville Village Council voted in August to approve the permit for Friday's event.
St. Joseph County Sheriff Mark Lillywhite said described Friday's event as peaceful. He said no arrests were made.
