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A peaceful Black Lives Matter rally turned violent Saturday night when a person drove up to a crowd of protesters on Congress Avenue before stopping, shooting a man and quickly driving off, according to newsreports, Facebook Live video and police.
The victim, identified by his family and later by police as 28-year-old Garrett Foster, died at Dell Seton Medical Center. No other injuries from the incident were reported, but police said that a second person in the crowd drew a weapon and fired at the car as it drove away. Both shooters were questioned by police, but both have since been released.
Watch: @Chief_Manley provides media briefing in regards to Homicide #28 https://t.co/PSZRZAVwWz— Austin Police Department (@Austin Police Department) 1595804001.0
Much of the hours-long march was live-streamed on social media, including around the time the suspect shot Foster. Gunshots can be heard during this Facebook Live video.
The incident began around 9:50 p.m. when the suspect, driving down Fourth Street, honked at protesters before turning and speeding down Congress Avenue. The car came to an abrupt stop after appearing to hit an orange barrier. Several protesters then approached the car, including Foster, who may have been holding a rifle, police said. The driver of the car then pointed a gun out his window, fired several times and left the scene.
Foster had been attending the protest with his fiancé, a quadruple-amputee, and was pushing her wheelchair, according to Good Morning America, which spoke to Foster's mother.
A protester who had seen Foster before said he often brought his rifle with him, the Austin American-Statesman reported. His sister told the newspaper that she did not believe he would ever point a gun at someone.
Foster and his fiancé, Whitney Mitchell, had attended many protests peacefully over the past few months, according to his mother and other protesters. After initially dispersing following the shooting, Mitchell and several dozen other protesters reconvened by the Austin Police headquarters early Sunday morning. Mitchell was surrounded by protesters chanting Foster's name and sharing their condolences.
A GoFundMe page has been set up as a memorial to Foster.
This story has been updated with new information.
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Lately, the crypto market is looking shaky.
The price of bitcoin fell by more than half from its high, the digital currency luna crashed to $0 and a type of so-called stablecoin TerraUSD has been described as dead.
Reporting from the LA Times notes that experts seeing a correlation between traditional markets and the cryptocurrency market is high right now, with plunges in one being followed by a plunge in the other. On Wednesday, stocks had their worst day in more than two years with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 1,164 points.
Crypto’s volatility has long been questioned, especially after SXSW this year was filled with Web3 enthusiasts and displays.
With 8% of Texans owning Bitcoin and many others involved in the local crypto and Web3 scene, what are they feeling amid the crash?
In a written comment to Austonia, ATX DAO said a positive with the downturn is that “most of the speculative moneygrab type projects get washed out of the market, and the quality projects that deliver real value remain and gather more attention.”
The group went on to say it could work to their advantage as they carry out their latest project: a mural at Native Hostel that will have an NFT version. They’ll use sales toward donations to HOPE Outdoor Gallery, a local nonprofit that supports artists and creatives.
Meanwhile, Yagub Rahimov, a founder of an Austin-based Web3 company explains that they aren’t really impacted by the crash.
Since the company known as Tested Web functions as a Web3 online reputation marketplace, it is utilizing blockchain technology without tokenizing.
“We are a share to earn marketplace. That means that any activity that users have on tested web.com, we will be rewarding,” Rahimov said. “Those rewards are coming in the form of rewards points. And every quarter they can opt in to receive either a gift card or a check. We are not issuing any cryptocurrency. That's one of the important elements that I believe we got it right that way.”
With recent developments at Tested Web, Rahimov says he “couldn’t be happier.” After struggling to find tech talent in early spring, he’s had a hiring spree in the last 10 days and received a $1 million grant and partnership with Silent Notary, a blockchain-powered validation provider.
But his recent business success aside, Rahimov is noticing what’s happening in the markets and predicts that the correlation between the crypto market and traditional one will be broken.
“The way Bitcoin was introduced back in 2009, it was as a reply or response to the 2008 market crash,” Rahimov said. “And it really feels like we are in 2007, 2008, actually, early, early days of the market crash. And if it becomes that way, very likely that the winner is going to be those of decentralized parties.”
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Barton Springs Pool is on a condensed schedule while the city tries to fill out its lifeguard roster.
The popular pool is currently closed on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays while it navigates a lifeguard shortage. The city is offering bonuses to new applicants who can start by early June.
Austin Parks and Recreation Assistant Director Jodi Jay said there are 207 lifeguards ready to work and 100 incoming but the department needs 750 to be fully staffed.
Zoom out: The pandemic has had a lasting impact on hiring—in 2019, the city was able to hire 850 lifeguards. The Aquatic Department has been unable to match those numbers since it reopened training classes in spring of 2021.
Why it matters: The city needs at least 400 lifeguards, plus 30 with open water certification, to open pools on a modified schedule by June 4. Without hitting that mark, some facilities could limit hours or close.
The job pays between $16-19 an hour, anyone over 15 can get certified and there are bonuses on the table:
- $500 bonus if you get certified and start working by June 6.
- $500 bonus if you work through August 14.
- $250 bonus if you get advanced certification.