By Tim Arnett
WABASH,Indiana – Commuters traveling to work through the Cass and Stitt Street intersection in Wabash Thursday morning might have caught a glimpse of an apparent demonstrator holding a sign on the sidewalk in front of CVS. The mystery man wore a Guy Fawkes or Anonymous mask and was holding a cardboard sign handwritten with the words “WAKE UP – all lives matter.” The man was standing on the sidewalk at the intersection before CVS opened its doors at 8 am.
Matt Benson, Public Information Officer for the Wabash Police Department, told MiBash News Thursday that no one called to complain but Officer Greg Music saw the masked man and asked him several questions. The man apparently said that he was going to stay at the intersection for an hour and be gone by 8:55. Benson said that the man was not arrested or even asked to move on. Public Information Officer Matt Benson.
For many residents, a sight of a man holding a sign and wearing an Anonymous mask is a little out of the ordinary in Wabash but Benson refused to call it unusual. He pointed to religious pilgrims walking through town bearing a cross and out-of-towners who spend a few nights on the streets before moving on.
If nothing else, the protester caused a bit of excitement for CVS employees and their customers. CVS Shift Supervisor Brandi Mouser described the man as tall and skinny, wearing a black hoodie. She said cars were honking at the man as they went by and he was waving back to them.
Benson said that he does not believe the man was demonstrating against CVS specifically but, instead, chose that corner due to all the traffic that time of the morning. It is unclear if the man will be back but, if he is, he might be glad to know that both the city and the county passed an ordinance establishing a policy against the excessive use of force in dealing with non-violent civil rights demonstrations last fall.