NEWS

Black Lives Matter to hold Cincinnati rally on Friday

Cameron Knight
cknight@enquirer.com
Black Lives Matter supporters at a July 19 rally through Over-the-Rhine and downtown Cincinnati following the murder indictment of University of Cincinnati police officer Ray Tensing in the fatal shooting of Samuel DuBose.

In response to recent protests in Minneapolis and Chicago, Blacks Lives Matter announced they would stage a rally on Friday at Cincinnati Police headquarters in the West End.

Earlier this week in Minneapolis, five people were shot during the tenth day of protests following the shooting death of 24-year-old Jamar Clark. Authorities say Clark was shot during a struggle with police, but some people who say they saw the shooting allege Clark was handcuffed.

"Again and again, black people are restrained, brutalized and killed at the hands of police and the public is expected to trust the police account of events without challenge," said the statement from Black Lives Matter, released Wednesday. "For decades, the police have distorted, lied, and covered up violent acts against people of color and working people in general, often getting off scot-free."

On Tuesday, hundreds of protesters chanting "16 shots" wove their way through the downtown streets of Chicago after the city released a dramatic video showing a white police officer firing a fatal barrage of 16 bullets at a black teenager.

Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald.

"The arrest, indictment, and jailing of police officers and vigilantes that commit these heinous assaults is the only justified response that the police and the legal system can provide," the statement said.

The rally is planned for 6 p.m. at the Cincinnati Police Department District 1 headquarters on Ezzard Charles Drive.

"We will hold a rally and press conference in solidarity with the occupation of the police station in Minneapolis, protesters demanding justice for Laquan McDonald in Chicago, and all victims of white supremacy and police terror."