GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — “United we stand, divided we fall,” was the chant heard outside J Burger N Wings on Eastern Avenue Thursday night, after a mother and son say that they were shot at for not bringing cash to pay for food.
Raven Sledge says that on Wednesday, she stopped at J Burger N Wings to get food for her and her 13-year-old son.
“The man asked me, did I have crash to pay for my food?” said Sledge. “I told him, ‘No, I had my debit card to pay for my food.’ He told me that he was only accepting cash because he had closed his register down already.”
She then headed for the door. However, that’s when she says that the man behind the counter escalated the situation. Sledge said that when she got in her car, the man was at the door holding a gun.
“By the time my son got in the car, before I started my car, I seen a flame come from his gun,” said Sledge. “So, I turned my car on, I was parked right here. I turned my car on, got ready to take off. When I got ready to take off, he shot again.”
According to Sledge, two shots were fired at her and her son. Thankfully, they weren’t hurt, just shocked.
“It scared me also because, I didn’t expect somebody to shoot at me when I’m coming to spend money at the establishment,” she said.
Sledge called the police to report the shooting. After a high-risk traffic stop, a suspect was taken into custody. Charges are pending. At this time, the suspect’s role at the business remains unclear.
“I feel like police do it, do the job. They got to run fast, that way he can’t do it to nobody else,” said Sledge. “But, it’s just terrifying that my son got to live his life like this, that we have to worry about going to establishment.”
At Thursday night’s protest, the community demanded action and accountability. William McFadden, an activist, says that he feels the business needs to be shut down.
“People out there in the community neighborhoods, y’all, we all got to come together as one is, to stand up for our people,” said McFadden.
Sledge says that she wants the suspect to not only pay for the damage to her car, but also the trauma she and her son experienced.
“He needs to be incarcerated, because he has shot at me and my child,” said Sledge. “My child have to live with this for the rest of his life.”
Thursday’s group says that they plan to continue protesting once the business opens.
