For the 15th straight day, protesters took to the streets of New York City, marching to remember those who have died at the hands of police, and to demand reforms.
Thousands of protesters rallied at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. What started out as a few hundred gained more and more marchers as they made their way through Prospect Heights and Crown Heights, chanting, "Join us."
Facing off against a line of NYPD officers, they shouted and chanted, "How do you spell racist? NYPD" and called for the cops to quit their jobs.
A mom and her teenage son who joined the march along the way told NY1’s Shannan Ferry they felt they had to join in when the protesters passed their home.
“I’m young,” the son said said, “so I come at this from a young person’s perspective. I know this has been going on for hundreds of years.”
His mom said she worries every time her son leaves the house.
Another group of protestors started and ended their demonstration in Washington Square Park.
Along the way, they made their way over to Christopher Street, where they paused for a moment of silence outside the iconic Stonewall Inn, seen by many as the birthplace of the LGBTQ rights movement.
They continued their march along the West Side Highway, then blocked the entrance to the Holland Tunnel for a few minutes before moving on again.
Drivers along Canal Street were stuck in traffic, but most showed signs of support.
One told NY1’s Shannan Ferry he didn’t mind having to wait.
"People needed to wake up and realize that all this racism needs to go away," he said.
Ferry said the marches appear to be more organized, with leaders on walkie-talkies and people handing out masks and water to demonstrators, signaling when to stop to take a knee or listen to brief speeches.
Earlier, another large group of protesters gathered on 110th Street in Harlem and marched downtown, dripping red paint on their way.
The “Blood on the Streets” march organizers asked protestors to bring red paint “to drip on the streets to symbolize the blood militant forces such as the police cause black people to shed”.
Marchers made their way down Fifth Avenue, followed by police cars and flanked by NYPD officers on bikes all the way to Wall Street, where they painted the Financial District streets.
There was reportedly one arrest of a protester who attempted to tag a crosswalk.
The protesters, many of them in their 20s, say it’s up to their generation to keep the marches going. And while they are pleased with the changes that are already being made to policing, like cutting budgets, they say there is still a long way to go.