Protesters downtown. Dan Ahlers Photography
June 3. By Dave Yochum. Wearing COVID-19 face-masks and carrying signs, hundreds of peaceful protesters gathered in front of the Cornelius Police Station and then marched west on Catawba Avenue.
Shopkeepers shouted solidarity with the marchers.
Cornelius Police Chief Kevin Black walked alongside in a face mask as well, most people undoubtedly unaware of who he was. There were police walking in the front of the procession which Black said grew to as many as 400.
At 6:30 pm the veteran police officer said there were no incidents.
Commissioner Thurman Ross, the only African-American on the Town Board, joined the procession as well as Commissioner Michael Miltich.
Most carried signs which included GEORGE FLOYD, BLACK LIVES MATTER, NO JUSTICE NO PEACE AND SILENT NO MORE.
A white man carried a sign that said WHITE SILENCE IS VIOLENCE.
In fact, the crowd was mostly white and mostly in their 20s, 30s and 40s.
Many motorists honked their horns and extended their fists from their car windows.
Among the crowd were young moms carrying infants in slings as well as a handful of elderly people, one of whom was writing chalk messages on the walls of Town Hall where more people gathered.
Chief Black said by the time the march returned to the Police Station, the crowd had reached 400.
At about 5:30 or 5:45 pm many people knelt in honor of Floyd, who was 46 when his death was recorded in video almost nine minutes long.
Carolyn Stapleton, with son Henry
The demonstration is expected to continue to 7 pm.
National outrage
Demonstrators continue to hit the streets Wednesday evening, as three more former Minneapolis police officers were charged Floyd’s death.
The three former officers, Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng, were charged with aiding and abetting murder, according to criminal complaints filed by the state of Minnesota. The murder charge against the fourth, Derek Chauvin, was also elevated to second-degree, from third-degree.
Floyd took his last breath under Chauvin’s knee May 25.
In many cities protestors and police are coming together as the nation grieves and former presidents speak out. Yesterday George Bush spoke out.
Today, as the march in Cornelius was under way, President Obama addressed young men and women of color.
“I want you to know that you matter,” he said.
Photo by Dan Ahlers Photography
