‘Honestly outraged.’ 200 Tri-Citians protest in Richland over Minnesota death
More than 200 people lined a stretch of George Washington Way on Saturday to call for justice for a Minnesota man who died after being restrained by police officers.
Some held signs reading, “Please I can’t breathe,” and “All lives can’t matter until black lives matter.”
The Richland protest at John Dam Plaza was peaceful while many others around the country, including in Seattle and Portland, turned violent and destructive.
Jaime Torres, the organizer of the Richland event, was motivated after seeing the video of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis.
“It was a murder on film,” he said. “Unfortunately that’s exactly what happened. ... It’s horrible what happened. It really is.”
One of the Minneapolis officers is now charged with murder and manslaughter after being fired.
Torres said he wanted to make sure the Richland event stayed nonviolent. While a couple of Richland officers were on hand, the protest was mostly quiet, with an occasional chant.
“There was a lot of support from the community and a lot of outrage,” he said. “My main goal is to show the world that we can protest peacefully. We don’t have to destroy our community. I understand the violence. I understand that level of frustration. That’s generations of pain overflowing on the streets. I’m not justifying it.”
Torres had planned to come out by himself but his Facebook post drew dozens of replies from people wanting to join him.
Elliott Page, a 17-year-old Richland student, volunteered to help by drawing X’s in chalk every 6 feet. All of the protesters wore masks and mostly stood apart.
“I’ve been honestly outraged,” Page said. “I personally believe that if you are silent then you are a part of the problem. We have to use our privilege to help raise awareness for people who are oppressed.”
Showing up on Saturday was the least she could do, she said.
On the other side of George Washington Way, Denise Pitts, 61, from Richland, was motivated to come to the protest because of the injustice she sees around her.
“I’m hoping that we can become more aware of the underlying systemic racism that persists in this country,” she said. “This racism goes on even when the cameras aren’t focused on it and it goes on all the time.”