After more than a week of repeatedly taking to the streets to protest systemic racism in policing in the wake of the killing of George Floyd, more events are planned Wednesday in Massachusetts and Rhode Island as residents call for justice.
In Boston, a march led by members of the city’s black youth, who have also organized the For the People coalition, will step off from Nubian Square at 3 p.m. and end outside Boston City Hall Plaza, according to a Facebook page for the event.
Masks will be available, water bottle and hand sanitizer stations will be set up along the route, and there will be cars ready to help protestors get home or quickly evacuate if necessary, organizers wrote.
The For the People coalition said in a press release that they have also called on the Boston City Council to address specific demands, such as asking “for funds previously slated for the Boston Police Department to be redirected to youth jobs programs, specifically SuccessLink, The City’s Youth Employment Program, violence prevention, and to hire more mental health counselors and expand social-emotional supports in the Boston Public Schools.”
Organizers added that black youth will testify throughout the march and during a subsequent rally addressing their support for these reforms.
“The black youth of Boston want to control our own narrative and on Wednesday, we will be reiterating these specific demands of our city councilors as they debate the City of Boston’s budget,” Queen-Cheyenne Wade, 22, said in a statement.
To help fund these proposals, For the People said the council could “trim the police department budget by 10% (approximately $41 million) with a cap on overtime accrual and overtime pay for military exercises.”
They also called on the council to cut funding for facial recognition technology, which activists and public officials have said is often inaccurate when it comes to identifying people of color.
While these demands don’t cover everything the movement is calling for, 21-year-old Mattapan resident Stephen Lafume said “they do represent bare minimum steps that can be taken right now through a democratic process that honors both what this moment and the future of Boston is calling for.”
As of Wednesday morning, 399 people had indicated on the event’s page that they will be joining the march and rally at 3 p.m.
Another caravan and protest for racial justice, “Get Off Our Necks!,” will kick off at 5 p.m. in Salem, with a lineup in the parking lot at 297 Bridge St., according to a Facebook page for the event.
Demonstrators will then march to their first stop in front of the Essex County Superior Courthouse, before moving again toward the Lynn Police Department, and ending in front of Lynn City Hall.
“At each location we will call out the knee on our collective neck and demand action for justice and accountability,” organizers wrote.
In Rhode Island, a “car-based protest in solidarity with Black Lives Matter protests across the world” will be held at 3:30 p.m. starting from Francis Street, just off Smith Street, between the Vets Auditorium parking lot and the State House in Providence, according to the event page on Facebook.
Organizers are asking drivers to post messages on their cars, play protest music, “bang pots and pans, honk your horn,” and make their opinions known as they pass Providence’s lawmakers and police officers.
“This is an opportunity for those who are immunocompromised or have young children or have mobility issues to join in demanding the end to systemic racism in all its forms,” organizers wrote.
