Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker clashed with far-left activist Patrice Jones during a heated City Council meeting Tuesday after Jones warned she and her supporters would show up at council members’ churches and “spaces where you are at and make you uncomfortable” and “make you uncomfortable in your comfortable space” if they did not heed her demands.
Parker fired back with a pointed reminder of a 2022 protest in which far-left activists left a bloodied coffin outside her home: “Patrice, I still have your casket.”
Activist Warning Sparks Clash
Jones was objecting to new restrictions on the public comment process, rules city leaders said were designed to keep meetings on schedule.
“You may as well give us the opportunity to do what you were elected to do and hear us here so we don’t pop up at your church or wherever you’re at and make you uncomfortable in your comfortable spaces,” Jones told the council, according to the Fort Worth Report.
Parker responded from the dais with the coffin remark — a direct reference to Jones’s alleged role in a 2022 protest in which activists left an empty casket, splattered with red paint and marked with slogans like “#SAYHERNAME,” in the mayor’s yard. Police at the time investigated the coffin as a possible “terroristic threat,” though no arrests were made. Parker has alleged Jones was involved, but Jones has denied any role in the incident.
Jones’ threat of public harassment came amid heightened concerns about the safety for elected officials following a wave of far-left political violence, including the assassination of Charlie Kirk. Parker, a Republican, said such comments “crossed a line.”
Accusations of “Terroristic Threat”
After Parker’s remark, Jones accused the mayor of making a “terroristic threat.”
“I want Mattie to publicly come out and say exactly what she meant by that, because my interpretation of ‘I have your casket’ — it’s a threat,” Jones told the outlet. “I mean, it’s a terroristic threat, plain and simple. I look at that as you’re saying that I’m going to die.”
Jones later attempted to report Parker’s remark to the Fort Worth Police Department, but officers told her it did not qualify as a criminal threat since Parker never suggested she would physically harm Jones. Police confirmed Jones’s complaint is part of an ongoing review.
Parker: “Crossed a Line”
In a written statement to Fort Worth Report, Parker said Jones had “crossed a line” during public comments by threatening to confront council members at their churches and private spaces.
“As your mayor, I have presided over hundreds of meetings, including public comment, and I do not respond — no matter what outlandish thing is said,” Parker wrote. “Her words did provoke me; it provoked my first responsibility as a mother and role as protector of my family. In the heat of the moment, I wanted her to know that I am aware of her role in the coffin stunt at my home in 2022.”
Community Split
Several Fort Worth residents defended Parker, claiming Jones was involved in the coffin protest — an allegation Jones has denied.
“Since we want to play dumb this morning. Mayor Mattie Parker said nothing wrong to that young woman. Y’all must’ve forgot December 10, 2022, when some of you radical people decided to go to our mayor’s house and drop this casket off,” Fort Worth resident Ricky Vasquez wrote on Facebook. “I remember I was there, and it was uncalled for and technically that can be considered a threat.”
Vasquez added: “So when y’all go in there and threaten the Mayor and say you’ll make it uncomfortable and she states back “I still have your casket” you can’t be mad. Representative Jasmine Crockett says a lot of uncomfortable stuff and y’all love it but when this Mayor who happens to be white has one up on you. Now it’s unprofessional and uncalled for.
He continued: “No no no, Mattie Parker said right and I applaud her. She used that casket against y’all and now all of you are mad…. I LOVE IT.”
Democrat Groups Pile On
Jones and her supporters quickly moved to escalate the incident, with several Fort Worth Democrat-aligned groups — including Tarrant4Change, United Fort Worth, and the 817 Podcast — publishing open letters demanding Parker apologize.
The letters accused Parker of hypocrisy, pointing out that just days earlier she had signed a bipartisan declaration denouncing political violence alongside mayors across the country.
“Such language from an elected official, particularly directed at a Black woman who is deeply engaged in civic participation, is both unacceptable and damaging to our community,” the 817 Podcast hosts wrote.
Jones herself accused Parker of racism, claiming the mayor’s tone reminded her of “a slave master’s wife putting a slave back in line for having the audacity to come and address them.”
Council Member Weighs In
Council Member Charlie Lauersdorf also waded into the controversy, commenting online that it was “common knowledge” Jones was tied to the 2022 coffin protest. Jones has denied involvement and accused Lauersdorf of defamation.
During the same Sept. 30 meeting, Lauersdorf warned residents against threatening the council. “Speaking with the city attorney, she probably wouldn’t want me to say, ‘F around and find out,’ so I won’t,” he said. “But I will say, ‘Please test that assumption, and then take note of the results.’”
The Dallas Express reached out to both Jones and Parker but did not receive a response.