Around 150 folks confirmed up exterior the State House to protest police brutality in opposition to Black males within the wake of the Memphis police beating and demise of Tyre Nichols.
Saturday’s protest, that includes speeches and a march, adopted an preliminary gathering Friday evening earlier than the Memphis Police Department launched footage exhibiting the visitors cease involving the Black motorist and the 5 Black Memphis cops.
The recording exhibits police on Jan. 7 beating Nichols, a 29-year-old FedEx employee, for 3 minutes whereas screaming profanities at him throughout the assault. Nichols calls out for his mom earlier than his limp physique is propped in opposition to a squad automotive and the officers alternate fist-bumps.
The 5 officers — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr., Emmitt Martin III and Justin Smith — withstand 60 years in jail if convicted of second-degree homicide.
Chants from protesters in Boston included “Enough is enough,” “Stand up and fight back,” and one speaker vowed “We must dismantle this (police) system and turn it upside down.”
The Boston Party for Socialism and Liberation organized the protests Friday and Saturday.
“They should be punished to the fullest extent of the law,” stated a member of the Boston PSL who recognized himself as “JD.”
“Justice includes building and sustaining a strong, mass movement of the people to ensure we put an end to the racist police tariffs once and for all in this society because no one should be subjected to what happened to Tyre,” he stated.
The Memphis Police Department has disbanded the particular unit whose officers beat Nichols to demise.
Police Director Cerelyn “CJ” Davis stated she listened to Nichols’ family, neighborhood leaders and uninvolved officers in making the choice.
“It is in the best interest of all to permanently deactivate the Scorpion unit,” she stated in a press release, including that officers at present assigned to the unit “agree unreservedly” with the step.
The footage launched Friday left many unanswered questions concerning the visitors cease involving Nichols and about different legislation enforcement officers who stood by as he lay immobile on the pavement.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are each condemning the Memphis police beating of Nichols. The president stated in a press release that he was “outraged and deeply pained to see the horrific video” of the beating and stated individuals who see it is going to be “justifiably outraged.” But he’s additionally urging protesters to keep away from any violence.
In Boston, the protests have been peaceable.
Sammy Albright, a member of the Boston Socialist Alternative, attended Saturday’s protest and stated his group is asking for creation of a “mass working party” separate from the Republican and Democratic events that will meet the calls for of ending police brutality.
“We call for defunding the police by 50% and redistributing that into social programs that can actually get to the root cause of crime and help marginalized communities with rent control, better schools and whatnot,” Albright stated.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”