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Project River protesters don’t trust official narrative: ‘There’s deception’

Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026. Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.

By Daniel Dassow 9 min read

BRADLEY COUNTY, Tenn. — As six protesters gathered across state Route 308 from the headquarters of Wright Brothers Construction to oppose a proposed nearby industrial campus, a white van pulled up to let out passengers who doubled the protest’s ranks.

On the sides of the van were written various messages about Project 2025, Flock cameras, sexual predators and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

“News Flash — 9/11 was an inside job,” said a message on a side window as protesters piled out Thursday afternoon. “Pattern recognition — It all connects. EAT THE RICH.”

The driver of the van was Cleveland resident Misty Parks. She had sat on the front row two days earlier at a public meeting in Cleveland attended by hundreds of residents and hosted by the developers of Project River, a estimated $11.3 billion proposal led by the Wright family. Parks was one of the attendees who shouted and booed at the developers as they presented plans for the project.

Project River protesters don’t trust official narrative

Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Protesters wave signs across the street from Wright Brothers headquarters in Charleston, Tenn., on Sept. 3, 2026.

Standing along the highway with around 15 fellow demonstrators, she said she doesn’t want the Bradley County campus to host a data center. Developers say a data center is the most likely customer for 1,500 megawatts of electricity that would be generated on-site. Several passersby honked their car horns in support of the protest.