BOSTON (WHDH/AP) — Protesters gathered in Boston and Brockton on Wednesday to again denounce police brutality against people of color.
Black Lives Matter called for more peaceful protesting aimed at ending white-on-black brutality like the deadly arrest of George Floyd by a white Minneapolis police officer who pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for several minutes even after he stopped moving and pleading for air.
Demonstrators began to come together on the Boston Common at about 3:30 p.m.
They cheered after learning that prosecutors expanded their case against the officers who were at the scene of Floyd’s death, charging three with aiding and abetting a murder and upgrading the charges against the officer who pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck to second-degree murder.
“I’m kind of being fed up with seeing this all the time and I just want to be able to look back and say that I did something,” demonstrator Eve Moniz said.
After a rally on the Common, the crowd marched peacefully to the state house as members of the National Guard and Boston police officers stood at a distance.
Sen. Ed Markey spoke to protesters at the end of the rally.
“It’s not just the buildings in our country that are on fire, it’s the soul of our country, which is on fire right now, and we have to do everything we can to route out the injustice, the racism, all of the inequality that exists and that people are protesting,” he said.
Meanwhile in Brockton, demonstrators made their voices heard for the second night in a row.
These protests remained peaceful, contrasting the night before when violence broke out in front of the police station.
“I wanted to come out to prove that this was always supposed to be a peaceful protest, that we just want to be heard,” demonstrator Jamesha Lewis said.
Gov. Charlie Baker acknowledged the protests at a Wednesday press conference saying “thousands and thousands of people are making their voices heard and taking a stand against the violence and injustice that befalls the black community every day across this country.”
“There were moments of tension and raw emotion. People shared their pain and frustration. They shared their agony and their anger over the injustice that pervades our nation. It was hard to watch at times,” Baker added, decrying the “cowards and criminals” who tried to injure police and destroy property.
Baker said he and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito have talked in recent days with members of the black and Latino community, elected officials, clergy members, and public safety officials about ways to enhance transparency and accountability across the Massachusetts law enforcement system.
Baker also acknowledged the challenge of holding protests during a pandemic given the need to remain six feet apart from each other, wear masks in public, and avoid large gatherings.
“We understand this guidance is in conflict with assembling to exercise First Amendment rights,” Baker said. “We ask everyone to balance the fight against the virus with the fight for what we as individuals believe in.”
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