Black Business Owner Evicted For Participating In Protests

A Black business owner in Des Moines, Iowa says he received an eviction notice for participating in a peaceful Black Lives Matter protest.

Liberian-born Jeremiah Johnson owns the fashion/retail store Stylent Brands and used to rent an office space, however his landlord saw Johnson and his associates protesting while watching the news and rescinded his lease. The landlord, according to Johnson, assumed that he and his friends were looting or involved in “illegal activity” and decided to terminate his lease.

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In footage uploaded to Twitter, Johnson attempts to explain to his landlord that there were two groups of protesters and that he and his friends were part of a peaceful demonstration distancing themselves from rioters.

The storefront owner says he wasn’t convinced and went as far as to send Johnson an email from his lawyer claiming that he and other protesters were seeking rights they haven’t “earned.”

In response, according to TMZ, Johnson plans to take his landlord to court. He says that he’ll tell the judge that his First Amendment rights were violated and he was discriminated against based on his race.