Protesters sit in the streets on Thursday

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Six people were arrested during a protest Thursday afternoon.

The protesters were charged with impeding traffic after they say in the middle of the intersection at South Tryon and Stonewall streets and refused to move.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department stated in a news release that officers arrested the protesters around 2:30 p.m.

The six people charged include Amelia Campbell, 22, of Boulder, Colo., Audrey Campbell, 22, of Boulder, Colo., Richard French, 39, of Farmington, N.M., Matthew Goodsell, 56, Christina Lee Mounce, 26, of Casper, W.Va. and Michael Joseph Stewart, 25, of Lakewood, Colo.

The protesters were sitting on a banner and blocking traffic at South Tryon and Stonewall streets.

Eyewitness News was told the people were protesting the relationship between Duke Energy and the Democratic Party. They said they feel the company is destroying the planet with tax payer dollars.

"They've paid almost no money in taxes. Several years, no money in taxes. Gotten tax rebates for clean energy under the new clean energy program. But they're not clean energy. It's mostly oil, natural gas, coal and nuclear power. Their claim to clean energy is one solar plant," said protester Matthew Malone.

As members of that group were being taken away, people who had flooded the streets to watch were cheering and applauding the police for their service.

WSOC