LANSING, MI – More than a thousand protesters gathered in downtown Lansing, packing the State Capitol lawn Sunday to peacefully demonstrate against police brutality and the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week.
Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died after being handcuffed by Minneapolis police investigating an alleged forgery the night of Monday, May 25. Video shared widely on social media shows white Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck for several minutes. In the footage, Floyd can be heard repeatedly saying he cannot breathe as civilians urge Chauvin to get off him and check his pulse.
Related: Police brutality protests in Michigan: What you need to know from this weekend’s rallies, riots
Floyd’s death set off a series of protests in cities across the country. On Saturday, May 30, protests occurred across Michigan the largest in Grand Rapids, Detroit and Flint. Protests in Grand Rapids and Detroit turned into riots as they stretched late into the night Saturday.
The protest outside the Michigan Capitol, organized by several Lansing residents, began at 11 a.m. and was still going on into the afternoon following speeches, chants and calls for change. A march that began at just after 12:30 p.m. wove through Lansing’s downtown and neighborhoods near the Capitol.
Police presence around the Capitol was light, and organizers said they spoke with local law enforcement ahead of the days demonstration.
“We have all watched the news and we have all seen what happens when protests go long,” said Jordan Davis, one of the lead organizers of the protest. “I ask everyone who came here to support us and our cause and is going to go home and figure out ways they can make a difference. To leave and go about your business so if stuff happens we are not the cause.”
“Don’t take away from the message,” cried out organizer Desante Johnson, of Lansing, standing next to Davis on the steps of the Capitol.
Their message was simple, the organizers said, as they and hundreds of others from all walks of life laid on the ground for nine minutes in memory of George Floyd.
“That nine minutes, it meant a lot,” said Tatiana Mason, 17, of Lansing. “In that nine minutes, those cops could’ve helped him. He laid their lifeless, pleading. I think about me, what if I’m calling to my mom and my dad and (there is) nothing they can do because that cop knows that they’re taking my life away, they know they are taking me away from my family. Its not right and we need to do better.”
Mason, and hundreds others lay with their chests against the walkway that leads to the Capitol. Many more stood silently, with fists raised.
“It makes me feel like we can get better,” Mason said. “No violence, no burning things. Just using our voices to communicate with each other, bond together. It will make a difference. We need to stand together.”
Three hours into the protest, police chased a man from the Capitol steps after vandalizing the steps of the Capitol building with the phrase, “(Expletive) 12” in green spray paint. The man ran from the steps, across the lawn and into the street before officers caught the man and took him into custody.
Demonstrations began just before 11 a.m. with dancing and crowds of protesters holding signs that read, “Black Lives Matter," “Thugs Against Trump” and “End the violence with love” on the Capitol steps.
The Black Lives Matter movement and group did not sponsor the protest. The Lansing chapter announced on Facebook Saturday that it was not holding any events in Michigan.
“I’m only 20 years old and growing up I had to see a lot of black people on the news being killed unjustly and I could never do anything,” said Kenedi Duvose, a senior at Michigan State University who was leading chants on the steps. “We are not here to be violent; we are not here to start any trouble, we just want to be heard.”
March across Lansing
As more protesters stepped up to speak and organizers led chants and calls for justice against police brutality, the crowds began to shift towards Michigan Avenue around 11:30 a.m. The protesters returned to the Capitol lawn shortly after, and then back down Michigan Avenue to begin their march.
The march went across Michigan Avenue to around Cooley Law School Stadium before looping back toward the Capitol. After the march arrived back at the Capitol, some protesters continued and eventually marched onto eastbound I-496 between MLK and Capitol for roughly twenty minutes.
Stretching for more than two city blocks, the line of marchers continued through empty streets, as local law enforcement held traffic and protesters walked among cars. Many drivers held out a closed fist or honked their horns in support of the marchers.
An apparent conflict arose near the Quality Dairy on North Pine Street, between protesters and the driver of a pickup truck. Some other protesters were quick to deescalate the situation and protect the driver and vehicle.
“To be honest, it’s really sad what’s going on,” said 21-year old protester James Henson. “Thirty years people been doing protests, talking about how police brutality needs to stop. We want our voices to be heard. If our voices are heard, people can understand why we are doing the things we do. We deserve the same rights as everyone else.”
Henson stood on top of a stone garden bed looking out at the hundreds marching around him. Organizers and Henson said that the protests need to show that the people of the United States must unite, regardless of the difference in the color of their skin.
“Initially when we started out we thought maybe we would have 100 people. We saw how quickly it grew, we asked other people to join in on our cause. We are here simply to just stand together in solidarity and for the unjust police brutality that we’ve been seeing," said Nicole Sherman, an organizer of the protest.
By 3:50 p.m., the protesters had mostly dispersed from the Capitol steps and lawn. But those marching had walked to East Lansing and were in the street near the intersection of Grand River Avenue and Michigan Avenue in East Lansing shortly after 4 p.m. Sunday.
Also on MLive:
Riot damage, COVID-19 exposure temporarily close two Kent County Secretary of State offices
‘We cannot wait for it to happen again’: Michigan civil rights department on George Floyd protests
84 arrests made in second day of police brutality protests in Detroit
"gather" - Google News
June 01, 2020 at 05:18AM
https://ift.tt/2TWUiSm
Thousands gather at Michigan Capitol for protest against police brutality - MLive.com
"gather" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2Sqdbwp
https://ift.tt/2Yjhqxs
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Thousands gather at Michigan Capitol for protest against police brutality - MLive.com"
Post a Comment