Austin LGBTQ community plans solidarity march for Black lives
AUSTIN, Texas - Some members of the Austin LGBTQ community are coming together to march in solidarity for Black lives.
The LGBTQ Solidarity March for Black Lives is scheduled to take place on Friday, June 5 at 7 p.m. and will start at Austin City Hall and end at the Capitol Building. The event is being organized by Austin LGBT for Black Lives, "an ad-hoc group of local activists that include white, black, and other activists of color."
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Organizers say the march is to show "solidarity and support for protests against the police killings of George Floyd in Minneapolis and to and to express outrage at the violent response peaceful protesters have endured at the hands of the Austin Police Department."
"This will be a peaceful protest, kicking off with a short rally at City Hall, then proceeding on sidewalks through the 4th St district and culminating with an 8 minute, 46 second silence on the Capitol’s south steps, the amount of time it took Minneapolis police officers to crush a man to death," organizers stated.
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Speakers for the march include:
- Rainny Daze: local activist, drag entity and comedian
- Valeri Abrego: local activist, and drag king
- Kingsley Grey: Local activist, father
- Community members Keelan Moses & Charity Lee
The official Facebook event can be found here.
"We acknowledge the risks being taken by people trying to exercise their most basic Constitutional rights to free speech and assembly, and the Austin Police Department’s unjustifiable violence toward many protesters in the past weeks. This includes the use of “less-lethal” rounds on peaceful protesters that have resulted in numerous hospitalizations for critical conditions. We call on the City of Austin to hold the officers responsible with firing and criminal prosecution. We also hope that city leaders who have rightly opposed this use of force will join us in protest on Friday," organizers wrote.
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