For the second day in a row, hundreds turn out to protest against police brutality in Greeley
University of Northern Colorado student Joshua Greer, center, leads a crowd of demonstrators on Saturday, June 6, 2020, during the Solidarity Against Police Brutality protest in and around Monfort Park in Greeley, Colo. Photo by Timothy Hurst.
By Brooklyn Dance
For the second day in a row, #BlackLivesMatter protesters peacefully gathered at Monfort Park in Greeley Saturday.
More than 300 people came out to protest police brutality after George Floyd, a black man, died at the hands of Minneapolis police officers May 25. Many attended Friday’s protest in Greeley as well.
Chants rang out across the park as protestors called for change.
“Black lives matter.”
“Hands up, don’t shoot.”
“8:46.”
“No justice, no peace.”
“Say their names: George Floyd, Breonna Taylor.”
A crowd of protestors is reflected in the glasses of Greeley resident Gavin Hamilton as he speaks on Saturday, June 6, 2020, during the Solidarity Against Police Brutality protest in and around Monfort Park in Greeley, Colo. Photo by Timothy Hurst.
Protestor Bowdie Hernandez carried a sign listing 27 people who she says were shot and killed in Weld County between 2005-2020.
“I’m here to support their families,” she said. “I think enough is enough.”
Organizers encouraged the crowd to carry the momentum forward and take action.
Speakers outlined a variety of ways people can work to make a difference in the community, such as registering to vote, voting in Colorado’s June 30 primary election, holding white people accountable, and getting new people into local offices.
Protesters held a moment of silence for George Floyd, positioned face down for 8 minutes and 46 seconds — the amount of time then-officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck as he lay face down.
Greeley resident Gavin Hamilton, right, hugs another demonstrator while others march down 47th Avenue on Saturday, June 6, 2020, during the Solidarity Against Police Brutality protest in and around Monfort Park in Greeley, Colo. Photo by Timothy Hurst.
Organizers thanked the crowd for remaining peaceful throughout Friday’s protest.
“They said there was going to be riots. They said there was going to be looting ... I got home last night and didn’t see anything about riots. Didn’t see anything about looting,” One organizer shouted through the microphone. “You did it the right way last night.”
The crowd then spilled across 47th Avenue like it did Friday night, some marching with their fists in the air. Protestors marched for more than an hour along 47th Avenue, at one point stopping traffic as they crossed 20th Street.
A Toyota SUV comes dangerously close to hitting recent University of Northern Colorado graduate Cole LeRoy on Saturday, June 6, 2020, during the Solidarity Against Police Brutality protest in and around Monfort Park in Greeley, Colo. Photo by Timothy Hurst.
No law enforcement or counter protesters were seen in attendance. The Greeley Police Department shared on Facebook they were thankful that both protests remained peaceful.
Greeley’s law enforcement response stands in stark contrast to how the Denver Police Department handled protestors last weekend.
On Friday, a federal judge issued a ruling ordering police not to use chemical weapons (think tear gas and pepper spray) and less-lethal projectiles on Denver protestors, according to a report by the Colorado Sun.
The order came after nine straight days of protests in Denver.
University of Northern Colorado student Joshua Greer leads a chant of “Who’s lives matter? Black lives matter” on Saturday, June 6, 2020, during the Solidarity Against Police Brutality protest in and around Monfort Park in Greeley, Colo. Photo by Timothy Hurst.
Timonty Ruth, a Greeley activist, attended protests in Denver and told the NoCo Optimist about it in a previous interview.
Ruth has been to several protests over the years, he said, and most of them have been without much incident. But when Ruth participated in recent Denver protests, he got tear gassed and flashbangs went off around him, he said. It was scary, but it made him realize he needed to be there.
“The fight to end racism and to end discrimination isn’t in the hands of the people who are victimized by it; it’s in the hands of those who benefit from it,” Ruth said. “(Change) starts with me getting tear gassed, it starts with me going to the front of the line to face police brutality, because black people face it every day.”
According to the Sun, Judge R. Brooke Jackson wrote, “The Court has reviewed video evidence of numerous incidents in which (Denver) officers used pepper-spray on individual demonstrators who appeared to be standing peacefully, some of whom were speaking to or yelling at the officers, none of whom appeared to be engaging in violence or destructive behavior.”