Dozens protest at busy Wilmington intersection to Reopen North Carolina

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Monday marks three weeks since Govenor Cooper’s Stay-At-Home order went into effect.

Some are saying it’s time to start reopening the state.

Dozens gathered alongside the busy intersection of Oleander and South College Road on Saturday to call for local leaders to start planning how to reopen North Carolina.

“We’ve got to get America back to work, especially in New Hanover County,” Melissa Meehan said. “Our numbers just don’t support being closed.”

Protest organizer Melissa Meehan says she is doing this for the small business owners and for the people who don’t know when they’ll see their next paycheck.

“It’s people’s stories that I hear. It’s things that I read of people that are totally living paycheck to paycheck,” she said.

And she says she is standing up for her constitutional rights.

“When we started seeing our first amendment rights being trampled on, and that’s exactly what they’re doing, it scares us because if they’re going to take that much how much more will they take?” Meehan said. “We just can’t stand for that. We have to stand up for the Bill of Rights, we have to stand up for the Constitution which says we have the right to assemble.”

Protestors sported homemade signs and lots of american flags.

One woman decked out in red, white, and blue is asking elected officials one thing.

“Think of the people. Think of the people that are struggling,” Susie Collins said. “They were struggling before now. There’s people that are poor and don’t have anything, and you took their jobs away from them.”

Susie Collins says she is one of the lucky ones. She is still able to work, but she says she has friends who aren’t so lucky.

“They’re having a hard time paying their bills. They can’t pay their mortgage,” she said. “I mean they’re scared. People are scared.”

Meehan, an admin on the Reopen NC New Hanover County Facebook page, says they will do this every weekend if that’s what is necessary to get the elected officials moving.

“These people won’t forget come November,” she said. “I think that’s what should make our local leaders and local representatives a little bit nervous. We’re in an election year. You haven’t given us enough time to forget. I don’t think these people will forget.”