Story by Allison Perrine | Photos by Patrick Olivero
KEANSBURG – The country is in turmoil right now with racial tensions high in the wake of the death of George Floyd, a black Minnesota man who died when a white police officer knelt on Floyd’s neck for several minutes during an arrest.
Protestors have been taking to the streets all over the U.S. to demand justice and an end to racism. At least one protest has been held in every state. Some peaceful protests have even popped up in the Two River area, including in Asbury Park and most recently, Keansburg.
At the Keansburg waterfront Tuesday evening, an estimated 300 people of different races came together peacefully to join the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. A few organizers spoke to the crowd about holding racists accountable for their actions. Then, the crowd started to march.
The protesters marched from La Playa Restaurant on Beachway Avenue to the Keansburg Police Department, with police officers flanking protesters as they walked. They held homemade signs about the BLM movement, George Floyd and other victims of police brutality. Marchers chanted the entire time, preaching messages like “No Justice, No Peace” and “I Can’t Breathe,” Floyd’s words as he was being held down during his arrest. The Hennepin County medical examiner concluded the manner of Floyd’s death was homicide. Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been fired and charged with second-degree murder in the incident.
Once the crowd reached the police department, a few hundred individuals took a knee. Eventually, after some time, several police officers did the same.
Some peaceful protests in the U.S. have been disrupted by chaotic riots and vandalism with charges of violence leveled at both protestors and police. Some stores have been looted and destroyed. Some buildings and businesses in communities were set on fire. In a few places, including the nation’s capital, police used tear gas and rubber bullets to clear peaceful protestors.
But the Keansburg protest was “nothing but peaceful and empowering,” according to 24-year-old protestor and Middletown resident Cara Mitchinson. “People from all walks of life showed up to defend the rights of our black community and demand justice for the horrific death of George Floyd,” she said.
Terrence Floyd, George’s brother, spoke out this week to send a message of peace to the rioters.
“If I’m not over here blowin’ up stuff, if I’m not over here messin’ up my community, then what are y’all doing?” Terrence said in a passionate delivery June 1 in Minneapolis. “Y’all doing nothing because that’s not going to bring my brother back at all. My family is a peaceful family.”
The article originally appeared in the June 4 – 10, 2020 print edition of The Two River Times.
