WINTERVILLE, N.C. (WNCT) — A press conference was slated to be held Thursday at the Winterville Town Hall for Pastor Darron Carmon. He’s the pastor convicted of a crime almost 30 years ago.
However, it turns out the Town of Winterville was not allowing the groups to speak, saying their issue was a legal matter. Meanwhile, the groups People Against Racism and The Pastoral Alliance said not being able to share their message perfectly illustrates the fight they are going through.
“The same way that Pastor Carmon was not allowed to speak or be heard in 1993, here we are again in 2024, not allowed to speak or be heard,” said Darius Carmon, the oldest son of Darron Carmon.
The two groups want to spread the message of Carmon’s wrongful conviction. They urged the town to take accountability to help him receive a pardon. The pastor’s son, Darius Carmon, helped lead Thursday’s demonstration.
“We want to make noise that a pardon and exoneration should go hand in hand, and we’re here in support of my father, Pastor Darron Carmon, as he holds the town of Winterville accountable for what happened to him, so that’s why we’re here.”
When asked why the groups were unable to speak, town officials said it was a litigation issue.
“The letter that was pinned on behalf of Bishop Rosie O’Neal could not be read because of litigations. That’s all we got, because of legalities the letter could not be read,” Carmon said.
The groups expressed frustration that even at a public forum, their message could not be heard.
“This is a public forum, this is a forum where anyone in the community can come and voice their concerns, and as we got here to voice our concerns,” Carmon said. “We were told to be quiet, we were told to not say what needed to be said, we were told that we could not show our support.”
As Carmon and the pastor continue their personal fight for his pardon, the groups want to remind the community that this could happen to anyone.
“We want everyone to know that he is not alone and we are here to support him and we are going to continue to push,” Carmon said. “We’re going to continue to show up, we’re going to demonstrate just like we’re doing now until change happens and not just for him but for anyone who has experienced anything like this.”
Both groups said they will continue their fight for Pastor Carmon because they say this situation could happen to anyone.
