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Protest held in NLV on anniversary of 1963 March on Washington

Updated August 28, 2020 - 11:26 pm

A peaceful protest in North Las Vegas drew about 100 people making their voices heard in solidarity with those taking part in the 57th anniversary commemoration of the March on Washington earlier Friday in the nation’s capital.

“Commitment March Get Your Knee Off Our Necks” was filled with chants, cheers and speeches to inspire the rallygoers at the Martin Luther King Jr. statue at 2428 N. Martin Luther King Blvd.

National Action Network Las Vegas Vice President Stretch Sanders said he encouraged the Las Vegas residents who were protesting here, rather than at the March on Washington commemoration in D.C.

“This is a national fight,” he said. “Flying to D.C. is a hangout if you ain’t marched out here. I commend you guys for staying here.”

Vegas Urban Pride founder Nicole Williams said she recalls the civil rights movement of the 1960s, when Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. stood with individuals of all races and sexualities. Williams said police brutality isn’t restricted to one segment.

“The problem is bigger than Black men dying,” she said.

Vegas Urban Pride co-hosted an event Aug. 20 to remember the deaths of Black trans people who had been murdered in 2020.

‘As long as racism clocks in, so am I’

Sierra McDaniels, 24, of Las Vegas, said she has gone to hundreds of protests in the city since 2016. On Friday night she came with her friend Samantha Archuleta, 25, also of Las Vegas, who has participated in several protests this summer. The women said that, while getting to D.C. wasn’t possible with their work schedules, they will continue to protest until there is radical change in the justice system and police reform.

“Social injustice is still happening,” McDaniels said. “As long as racism clocks in, so am I.”

Charles Gilbert, 50, of San Diego, said he didn’t want to get quarantined in D.C. for two weeks and was already in Las Vegas to watch a 14-year-old he trains compete in a basketball game, so he and the teenager came to the protest. Gilbert said he personally has faced police brutality multiple times.

“I’m not the darkest brother, but I’ve been on the ground three times,” he said.

Kileen Kapri-Kohn, 48, who lives in Summerlin, said she has tried to minimize her exposure outside during the pandemic but decided this protest was too important.

“I recognize my privilege as a mother who doesn’t fear for their children when they leave the house, and until my sisters of color can share that feeling, I’ll be protesting,” she said.

A handful of children, including Andrea Griffin’s grandson, were running in the grass before the speakers began Friday. Griffin, a North Las Vegas resident, said she brought her 5-year-old grandson, Damion Reese, to teach him about disadvantages Black people face. Griffin said she is on the board of directors for a mentorship program.

“I see the disadvantages they face before they even start,” she said of Black children.

Friday’s rally ended in a five-block march down Martin Luther King Boulevard. When the group reached the intersection in front of the statue again, Sanders directed protesters to stop in the crosswalk for about three minutes until seven police cars from the North Las Vegas and Metropolitan police departments arrived.

When Sanders directed the group to finish crossing, he told police, “That was just a sample.”

A night earlier, children, teens and adults gathered at the statue for a separate protest calling for the end of racism and police brutality in the valley.

Organizer Henry Thorns said the Martin Luther King statue was intentionally chosen as the Thursday night protest location to encourage a peaceful gathering of the neighborhood’s youngest.

Toya Turner, 38, a mother of four boys and aunt of several nephews, said she keeps her young ones close to home.

Turner said she allowed her children to participate in the Thursday protest because it was peaceful.

“It’s something positive for them to do. They don’t have to riot or think all cops are bad,” she said.

Cheer coach Lola Walker said she wanted the 5 -and 6-year-olds she coaches to know that change starts at home and she noted the Thursday protest was happening the evening before Friday’s March on Washington protest in D.C.

“This is our next generation,” she said pointing to the little girls seated patiently in front of her, waiting to perform their routines. “It has to start in our own community.”

Contact Sabrina Schnur at sschnur@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0278. Follow @sabrina_schnur on Twitter.

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