NASCAR Hall of Fame damaged in violent Charlotte protests

CHARLOTTE, NC - JANUARY 30: Joy Barbee, niece of Joe Weatherly, speaks on stage during the 2015 NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at NASCAR Hall of Fame on January 30, 2015 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NC - JANUARY 30: Joy Barbee, niece of Joe Weatherly, speaks on stage during the 2015 NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at NASCAR Hall of Fame on January 30, 2015 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)

Racing body closes offices on Thursday in light of Wednesday night’s civil unrest following demonstrations in the aftermath of the fatal shooting of Keith Scott.

Peaceful protests that turned violent in uptown Charlotte overnight caused the NASCAR Hall of Fame and other business to close on Thursday. Windows were broken in the NASCAR Tower office building, which houses the Hall, as well as the Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant connected to it, according to a report at Yahoo! Sports.

Protesters were unable to gain access into the building and none of the exhibits were stolen or damaged. There were events scheduled today in the Hall of Fame as well as the Charlotte Convention Center, also located in the NASCAR Tower, and the following statement was issued by the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority:

“The events that have transpired over the last 48 hours have been incredibly difficult for our community. We continue to keep open lines of communication with the City, CMPD and our partners to monitor the latest developments. The damage at our CRVA venues consists of broken exterior windows at the Charlotte Convention Center and NASCAR Hall of Fame and a breach that took place at one of our tenant spaces at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Buffalo Wild Wings.

“We do have events scheduled to take place in the Charlotte Convention Center and NASCAR Hall of Fame today and in the coming days. The safety of these meeting attendees who have traveled significant distances to convene in Charlotte is especially important to us and we’re working to take appropriate security precautions in collaboration with our partners at CMPD. We’ll continue to assess and communicate with our partners throughout the day.”

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The day of the shooting, the NASCAR Hall of Fame hosted an event to showcase the first ever Chase for the Xfinity championship where the 12 drivers were inside the building meeting media and fans. Shortly after it ended, Scott was shot at an apartment complex near the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

The protest have stemmed from the shooting of Keith Scott by a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officer. It original started peacefully, but turned violent over the last two days. Overnight a demonstrator suffered life threatening injury after being shot in the head, apparently by another civilian.