a protest march for George Floyd tonight
2020-May-28, Thursday 09:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mellowtiggerFor nearly 5 years, I've called attention to the #WarzoneInMinneapolis. This isn't how I expected the rest of the world to start listening, but even the BBC is calling this week's aftermath a warzone.
So far, the riots have been in the 2nd-worst crime and poverty affected part of the city (the 3rd police precinct), not my own worst part (the 4th precinct). What they have in their favor there is a history of hippy-dippy, new-age, kumbaya peaceniks in their midst. Since 1975, their May Day Festival was the epitome of that area's image in my mind. I seriously believe that's the secret sauce that my own precinct is lacking.
But here we are, nevertheless. Another corpse. Another protest. And then I'm back at the site of the Occupy camp, from several years ago.
After the riots and burning and looting yesterday, I wasn't sure that I wanted to attend the protest planned in downtown Minneapolis on Thursday at 5pm. I'm glad, though, that I finally decided to join them. The first or second thing the organizers said on the loudspeaker was that they wanted this event to be peaceful, and there was widespread agreement from the crowd.
It was hard to hear, unfortunately. Noise from the blades of the news helicopter echoed between the tall buildings. Masks muffled the voices of the speakers. Social distancing kept most of us far away from the small loudspeaker. But everybody paid attention and joined in the chants when they could hear the call.
Someone in blue nurse scrubs was handing out surgical masks to anyone who wanted one. Almost everybody already had their own mask.
I was getting ready to leave the rally around 6pm when they announced the march. I didn't know it was a march too. I'm not sure that anybody but the organizers knew. There were no police escorts while we walked down the streets amid the cars surrounded by protesters. Young volunteers with bright vests helped to direct traffic at intersections.
Into the streets, among the cars, and looking backward from the middle of the march.
Along the way, several cars honked their support. Nobody drove aggressively into the crowd as has been reported at earlier protests. We also answered calls for a few chants.
"Say his name! George Floyd!"
"What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!"
It was quite a crowd, and it drew onlookers watching from their expensive apartments with the solid cement ledges.
I left about 6:30pm when we got back to the plaza. I drove home and ran into some other big event blocking streets in my area of the city. Not sure what it was. Lots of police cars. Lots of police standing farther away from it. No idea what was happening at the corner of Lyndale and Broadway, a mile or so from my house.
So far, the riots have been in the 2nd-worst crime and poverty affected part of the city (the 3rd police precinct), not my own worst part (the 4th precinct). What they have in their favor there is a history of hippy-dippy, new-age, kumbaya peaceniks in their midst. Since 1975, their May Day Festival was the epitome of that area's image in my mind. I seriously believe that's the secret sauce that my own precinct is lacking.
But here we are, nevertheless. Another corpse. Another protest. And then I'm back at the site of the Occupy camp, from several years ago.After the riots and burning and looting yesterday, I wasn't sure that I wanted to attend the protest planned in downtown Minneapolis on Thursday at 5pm. I'm glad, though, that I finally decided to join them. The first or second thing the organizers said on the loudspeaker was that they wanted this event to be peaceful, and there was widespread agreement from the crowd.
It was hard to hear, unfortunately. Noise from the blades of the news helicopter echoed between the tall buildings. Masks muffled the voices of the speakers. Social distancing kept most of us far away from the small loudspeaker. But everybody paid attention and joined in the chants when they could hear the call.
Someone in blue nurse scrubs was handing out surgical masks to anyone who wanted one. Almost everybody already had their own mask.
I was getting ready to leave the rally around 6pm when they announced the march. I didn't know it was a march too. I'm not sure that anybody but the organizers knew. There were no police escorts while we walked down the streets amid the cars surrounded by protesters. Young volunteers with bright vests helped to direct traffic at intersections.
Into the streets, among the cars, and looking backward from the middle of the march.
Along the way, several cars honked their support. Nobody drove aggressively into the crowd as has been reported at earlier protests. We also answered calls for a few chants.
"Say his name! George Floyd!"
"What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!"
It was quite a crowd, and it drew onlookers watching from their expensive apartments with the solid cement ledges.
I left about 6:30pm when we got back to the plaza. I drove home and ran into some other big event blocking streets in my area of the city. Not sure what it was. Lots of police cars. Lots of police standing farther away from it. No idea what was happening at the corner of Lyndale and Broadway, a mile or so from my house.