I have footage of all that in another post, but for now, let’s hear from the two speakers who opened the march.
“To say that ‘black lives matter’ seems to be a revolutionary belief in a nation where the possibility that a young black man may have stolen some cigarettes or that some self-appointed watchman was scared enough is enough to justify the murders of black bodies…”
“Why is success being quantified as a simple linear equation, hard work plus motivation equals success? Why do we not consider the other factors like race, gender, class that affect this so-called path? Michael Brown’s mother did everything she could for her son. Together they worked hard tirelessly so that he could have the opportunity to attend college where previously there was none. But in the matter of a few minutes, that did not matter. It didn’t matter that he studied. It didn’t matter that he applied. It didn’t matter that he did the work. In a matter of seconds he was nothing more than a black body…”
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]]>Protesters took to the streets of Providence Friday night in an entirely peaceful #ThisStopsToday march through downtown. Here are some photos from the event.
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]]>In Providence, where a firefighter showed solidarity with the protesters, Mayor-elect Jorge Elorza emailed the below statement to RI Future:
The events in Ferguson and Staten Island were tragic, and my heart goes out to the families of Michael Brown and Eric Garner and the entire communities that surround them. I understand the grief and concern that so many in our city and country are feeling in the wake of these decisions. As Mayor, I am committed to doing everything in my power to ensure that each of our residents is treated fairly under the law, and I will work every day to strengthen and rebuild the trust between the community and the police.
Tomorrow night in downtown Providence, the city holds its annual tree-lighting ceremony near Burnside Park at 6pm. At the same time, there is a protest action planned to begin at Central High School.
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