A protest against anti-black violence and racism took over the grounds in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery on Sunday night.
Thousands attended the rally, which Vancouver Police Chief Adam Palmer said was peaceful.
The protest Sunday (May 31) comes after nearly a week of protests in the United States, which were sparked by a Minneapolis police officer seen on video kneeling on the neck of George Floyd, a handcuffed black man who died in custody after pleading that he could not breathe. Derek Chauvin was charged with murder Friday, and all four police officers present during Floydsa国际传媒檚 death have been fired.
Floydsa国际传媒檚 death was the latest in a series of confrontations, assaults and deaths of black Americans. On Feb. 23, Ahmaud Arbery, 25, was fatally shot in Georgia while jogging. On March 13, Breonna Taylor, 26, was killed during a nighttime sa国际传媒渘o-knock warrantsa国际传媒� by plainclothes Louisville police officers. On May 25, a woman called the police on Christian Cooper to tell them he was sa国际传媒渢hreatening [her] lifesa国际传媒� when Cooper asked the woman to put her dog on a leash in New Yorksa国际传媒檚 Central Park.
In Canada, protesters also want answers about Regis Korchinski-Paquet, a black woman fell to her death from a 24th-floor apartment when police responded to a 911 call. Korchinski-Paquetsa国际传媒檚 death is being investigated by the police watchdog.
TY for exercising your right to lawful at the !
sa国际传媒� Adam Palmer (@ChiefPalmer)
TY to our officers for your professionalism & committment to !
Everyone went home safely in
..Itsa国际传媒檚 a big crowd at the Vancouver Art Gallery for
sa国际传媒� Lindsay Brown (@Lidsville)
Incredible, hopeful, peaceful, determined crowd (masks on, 2m apart) at Art Gallery to protest racism and creeping fascism. 10,000 I guess. Lots of antifascists here , ya can't arrest us all 鉁娾湂
sa国际传媒� Jim Stanford (@JimboStanford)
Here's an amazing shot of the crowd outside the Vancouver Art Gallery today. Everyone of you that was there deserves a standing O for showing solidarity with our Black brothers and sisters.
sa国际传媒� Tej Dhaliwal (@DrDangles87)
this is the at the Vancouver Art Gallery downtown.
sa国际传媒� S鈨MMER 鉁婐煆解湂馃従鉁婐煆� (@summersincities)
Jacob Callender-Prasad, the organizer of the event, had called for Sunday rally to be peaceful.
sa国际传媒淲e do not need to riot in Vancouver, we do not need to destroy our community sa国际传媒� thatsa国际传媒檚 not needed here,sa国际传媒� Callender-Prasad said in a video posted to the Black Vancouver Instagram page.
sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 not the same as the United States. We donsa国际传媒檛 have cops going around causing damage here.sa国际传媒�
Callender-Prasad has asked attendees to wear face masks and practice social distancing as COVID-19 precautions remain in effect in B.C. Organizers had expected about 1,000 to 2,000 people
Callender-Prasad said Sundaysa国际传媒檚 event would include a social media shoutout to U.S. President Donald Trump sa国际传媒渢o ask him to actually push the governor in Minnesota, to push them to charge those other three officers.sa国际传媒�
Callender-Prasad said that although police brutality may be more prevalent south of the border, there are still issues in Canada to address.
sa国际传媒淲e still have instances in Canada of these unwanted and unfortunate events.sa国际传媒�
The Vancouver chapter of Black Lives Matter said it was not the organizer of the event but stood in solidarity with those protesting.
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