All of the Nuance We Are Missing from the Riverboat Brawl of 2023

The recent Riverboat Brawl in Montgomery, Alabama is all over the internet.

According to NBC, the incident began when “A group of rowdy boaters refused to move their pontoon and attacked the dock worker when he untied the boat to make way for the Harriott II.” That dock worker was actually co-captain Damien Pickett. The Riverboat riders recorded as multiple men violently attacked the Mr. Pickett after he asked them to move their pontoon so that the riverboat could safely dock.

What ensued was an all-out brawl that has popular culture not just talking, but laughing. The proliferation of memes, songs, skits, and commentary have been enough to occupy popular discourse for days.