Fact check: Where pallets of bricks delivered to different cities to be used in protests

1. Summary of the results

The claim about pallets of bricks being deliberately delivered to cities for protests has been thoroughly investigated and found to be false. Multiple sources confirm there is no evidence of any coordinated effort to plant bricks for protest-related violence ^{[1] [2]}. The original claim appears to have originated from a satirical post by comedian Jonathan Gregory, which was then misrepresented as factual news ^[3].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

• The viral images of brick pallets that circulated on social media were actually from unrelated locations like Malaysia and New Jersey, showing legitimate construction sites that were misrepresented ^[4]
• Specific investigations in multiple cities including Frisco, Dallas, Norfolk, Los Angeles, and Boston confirmed that the bricks were part of legitimate construction projects, with local officials and police departments verifying this ^[5]
• While protesters did use bricks for destruction in some instances, there was no evidence supporting claims of intentional placement ^[1]
• The California Democratic Party, which was accused of purchasing bricks, has explicitly denied these claims, and their financial records show no such expenditures ^[3]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

• This narrative represents a recurring misinformation trope that has appeared during various protests since 2020 ^[4]
• Even social media posts spreading this claim acknowledged its lack of credibility, with one noting a low confidence level of 45/100 and admitting no authoritative source had confirmed the allegations ^[6]
• The spread of this misinformation benefits those who wish to:

Delegitimize legitimate protests by suggesting they are orchestrated

Create narratives about coordinated violence

Generate engagement on social media through sensational claims

The persistence of this narrative despite thorough debunking demonstrates how easily construction-related materials can be misrepresented to support conspiracy theories during times of social unrest