Right before Solange Knowles deleted her Twitter account on Tuesday night, she asked her followers how she could help her "new hero" Takiyah Thompson. Thompson is a 22-year-old student at North Carolina Central University, and was arrested yesterday (August 15) for participating in the destruction of a confederate statue in Durham, in solidarity with Charlottesville.
She has been charged with two felonies (participation in a riot with property damage in excess of $1,500 and inciting others to riot where property damage exceeds $1,500) and two misdemeanors (damage to real property and disorderly conduct by injury to a statue). The felonies carry potential prison sentences of 25 months and 41 months respectively.
Thompson was released from jail late last night, August 15, but is expected to appear in court in Durham this morning. To contribute towards her legal fees and the bail funds of other local activists, you can donate to the Durham Solidarity Center. To take more direct action, you can call the prosecutor to push for the charges against Thompson to be dropped on this number: 919-808-3010
See the tweet embedded below for further numbers you can call — including the sheriff and county commissioners — to demand that there are no charges pressed against the protestors who tore down the statue in Durham. Find out how to donate to victims of the Charlottesville terror attack here.