Austin Councilman Flannigan Accosted By Conservative Activists

AUSTIN, TX — Austin City Council member Jimmy Flannigan was accosted by a group of motorcycle-riding conservative activists on Saturday as the councilman was leaving a campaign event organized at a park in his district.

The incident occurred shortly after 2 p.m. at Springwoods Park in District 6, aides to Flannigan told Patch via email. Aides described the event as a "low-key" campaign event for Flannigan, who is facing a Dec. 15 runoff election against political rival MacKenzie Kelly in a quest to hold his council seat.

Flannigan's camp provided cell phone footage of the confrontation with Luis Rodriguez, president of a pro-police group calling itself the Wind Therapy Freedom Riders. The name alludes to the motorcycles that are members' preferred transportation mode.

According to Flannigan, the confrontation with Rodriguez occurred after the councilman block-walking at the park. In an email, a Flannigan campaign aide wrote that a group of at least six motorcyclists entered the parking lot as Flannigan prepared to leave before Rodriguez blocked the councilman's door as he shouted at him, having taken affront at being called racist.

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Cell phone footage of the confrontation can be seen by clicking here. The clip contains language that could be offensive to some readers. "This is the harassment my opponents think is ok," Flannigan wrote on his Twitter account where he subsequently posted the footage. "This is not ok," he added in all-capitalized letters.

Flannigan's field director, Jacob Aronowitz, can be seen in the footage stepping between the activist and Flannigan as the former hurls invective at the councilman.

Wind Therapy Freedom Riders did not address the issue on its social media accounts. Recently, the group moved from Facebook to an alternative dubbed MeWe. In a recent entry, the group lauds Rodriguez while alerting to Congressional recognitions honoring the organization he heads from Rep. John Carter and State Sen. Donna Campbell.

"Just 3 years after co-founder and WTFrs National President, Luis Rodriguez, walked out of prison (3rd DWI ended 2015), and less than a year after starting the Wind Therapy Freedom Riders (aka WTFrs), we were awarded a Special Congressional Recognition Award as well as a Texas State Senate Special Recognition Award for our Outreach Projects within our communities," the pro-police group wrote on its MeWe account. " We also receive a Texas state flag who [sic] Senator Donna Campbell dedicated to be flown over the Texas State Capital [sic] AND a US Flag which Congressman Carter had flown over the US Capital [sic] in honor of the work we have done."

Wind Therapy Freedom Riders members figured prominently earlier this month when photos emerged of them posing with Kelly and Austin Police Department officers at an earlier demonstration. Members of another group tied to white supremacy infiltrated the earlier crowd in posing for photos while flashing white power signs, as Patch reported at the time.

Flannigan faces a runoff after failing to secure more than half of the vote in a Nov. 3, four-way race for the council seat he has held since 2014 representing northwest Austin. The incumbent received 40.2 percent of the vote compared to 33.4 percent for Kelly, both emerging as the top vote getters to compete for the council seat in an upcoming runoff election. Contenders Jennifer Mushtaler and Dee Harrison secured 19.1 percent and 7.3 percent of the vote, respectively.

Former president of the LGBT Chamber of Commerce, Flannigan has actively sought police reform with others on the council dais. He currently chairs the council's Public Safety Commissions overseeing such reform efforts.

Undaunted by the weekend confrontation, Flannigan initially said on Sunday he planned to return to Springwoods Park, 9117 Anderson Mill Rd., at 4 p.m. on Monday "...to make it clear to the residents of District 6 that hate has no place here, and that white supremacy, misogyny, homophobia, anti-Semitism, and any other form of bigotry will not be tolerated," he wrote in an emailed advisory.

By early Monday afternoon, the council member opted for a virtual news conference given ongoing threat of coronavirus heightened when people are gathered. The virtual event now is scheduled to occur on Monday at 6 p.m. via Facebook Live at www.facebook.com/flanniganforaustin. In his original statement related to the news conference, Flannigan said the aim is "...to publicly denounce hate groups and their tactics."