Marching through Brooklyn on Monday for approximately five hours, protesters started their day in Bed-Stuy at Herbert Von King Park, traveled to Grand Army Plaza, eventually passed Barclay Center, and finally ended their demonstrations in front of Brooklyn Borough Hall.
Each step of the way, protesters demanded an end to systemic racism and police brutality in America.
This time, though, Black women led the way forward, with a message centered around protecting those most vulnerable to police brutality and ensuring Black women are guaranteed equality in all areas of life.
Speaking with Shannan Ferry, Kimberly Lewis, an organizer of the Black Lives Matter movement in New York City, told NY1 that she wants to focus on helping Black women overcome systemic racism in America.
“It was really important to dedicate this march to Black women. I think, historically, our voices haven’t always been heard or amplified,” Lewis said. “There are so many Black women who have been harmed over the years by police brutality — Sandra Bland, Breonna Taylor — and we typically don’t get justice for them. It’s not to say that Black men aren’t equally important, but we needed to carve out a space for ourselves to make our voices heard.”
Lewis told NY1 that, while it’s great that white allies have come out to support the movement, it’s simply not enough to just say they’re for change.
“We know that Black women are typically paid far less than their white female counterparts and white male counterparts. We need these people with us who say they are our allies to advocate for us in their HR departments, in their companies,” Lewis said.
Once the march began, organizers asked Black women to come to the front of the protest, where they began chanting “Black women matter,” and holding signs affirming their intrinsic worth.
The male organizers, who typically appear at the front with the women, stayed toward the back or middle this time around for the most part tonight, driving home the point that women had center stage tonight in Brooklyn.