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Lancaster shooting: Why is Internet furious over ‘Amish country’ reference? Here's a slice of history and facts

A user said, 'Stop it! They are not PROTESTING in 'Amish Country'! Lancaster city is a diverse city. The Amish community is found in rural Lancaster county. Get the facts!'

On September 13, 27-year-old Ricardo Munoz was shot dead by Lancaster police. And his death had also resulted in protestors outside the Lancaster police station calling for justice and shouting “Not one more!” according to LancasterOnline. The incident happened after the city police responded to a home call in the 300 block of Laurel Street in Lancaster, at 4:15 pm to report a domestic disturbance. Munoz was pronounced dead at the scene. The footage of the incident went viral on social media where an officer can be seen in front of a house in Laurel Street, while a man immediately emerges from inside and runs toward the officer, allegedly brandishing a knife above his head, in a threatening manner.

He was previously nabbed by Lancaster Police after he stabbed two people on March 4, 2019. The statement released by Lancaster Police read, "Det. Matt Odenthal filed a criminal complaint against Munoz before MDJ Roth. Munoz has been charged with (4) counts Aggravated Assault (F1). Munoz was processed on the complaint and is awaiting preliminary arraignment."

As reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer, late on Sunday night, supposedly in response to the protesters outside, police released new details about the incident and also released the officer’s body-cam video. According to the report, the graphic video shows a woman coming out of the house when the officer arrives outside. The video then shows a man coming out of the house. The officer runs, as the man chases him with the knife raised. Shots are and the man can then be seen laying on the sidewalk.

A lot of social media users slammed the BLM protestors for supporting a man who attacked the police. Some of them referred to Lancaster as the ‘Amish Country’. One user said, “Lancaster, PA. That’s right people, #BLM is rioting in the remote place known as AMISH COUNTRY. Think you are safe from the wrath of the leftist mob? The next riot could be in your small town, on your very street.” The political activist also quote-tweeted a protest video and wrote: “Lancaster PA. Amish country”.

But this didn’t sit well with many and they took it on themselves to state a few opinions on the same. One user said, "Stop it! They are not PROTESTING in “Amish Country”! Lancaster city is a diverse city. The Amish community is found in rural Lancaster county. Get the facts!" Another concurred, "Please stop calling Lancaster “Amish country.” Lancaster is a huge county. The Amish don’t reside in Lancaster city." One user said, "for those who don't know, Lancaster is not just a small AMISH rural town. A simple three-minute Google search will tell you that. Ignore everyone saying that BLM could blow up your little town next. They obviously don't have a clue."  A user commented, "Stop claiming that riots are happening in Amish country. They are happening in Lancaster city, where very very little Amish reside. Lancaster county is huge and doesn’t only include the Amish."

Here are a few facts, as stated in amishfarmandhouse.com. It is a misconception that the Amish live together in some sort of “Amish village.” In fact, as stated on the website, Amish families and farming communities stay and work throughout Lancaster County. According to an Elizabethtown College population study, 74,250 Amish live in Pennsylvania, which is about 23% of the total Amish population in the US. Ohio is a close second with an Amish population of 73,780. They refer to non-Amish people as “English”. Many businesses in Lancaster County are Amish-owned and operated and are open to the public.

Amish folks visit “English” stores too. Local shopping centers and grocery stores even have dedicated horse and buggy parking stalls where Amish customers tie their horses while they shop. The website states that the Lancaster Central Market is a must-visit. Even though one might not find Amish people living in downtown Lancaster, as stated on the website, their produce and meat stands are set up at Lancaster Central Market. The Lancaster Amish affiliation is the largest affiliation among the Old Order Amish and is a subgroup of Amish. The Lancaster affiliation is much more liberal in terms of the use of technology compared to other Amish affiliations.  

According to datausa.io, as of 2017, 11.3% of Lancaster residents were born outside of the country (6.76k people). In 2017, there were 2.08 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (24.1k people) in Lancaster than any other race or ethnicity. There were 11.6k White (Hispanic) and 8.5k Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups. So, it might not be correct to call it 'Amish Country'.