Protests Persist Across the Inland Empire
By: Kenya Staley
On May 25, 2020, 46-year-old George Floyd was killed by a Minneapolis police officer after being accused of attempting to pay for cigarettes with a counterfeit $20 dollar bill. For 8 minutes and 46 seconds Officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee against George Floyd, eventually leading to his death. According to an independent autopsy report, Floyd’s cause of death was ruled a homicide from "asphyxiation from sustained pressure." The news of his murder arrived only 2 months after 26-year-old Breonna Taylor was shot to death in her own home by Louisville police officers during a no knock warrant and three months after 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery was murdered by two white men while jogging.
As the nation grows weary of police officers killing unarmed black people, protests continue to erupt in cities and suburbs alike. Many organizers are hoping the momentum for change stays persistent in these next coming months.
On Friday, May 29, Rancho Cucamonga protestors crowded the intersection of Day Creek and Foothill boulevards in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. The protest began at 4 p.m. and lasted late into the evening. As protestors chanted “Black Lives Matter” and “No justice, no peace,” cars passed by honking their horns in solidarity.
The Rancho Cucamonga Sheriff’s Department wasted no time to covertly surround the area. Early into the protest, they were seen by protestors behind shopping centers and freeway exits nearby. According to the Daily Bulletin, “Deputies wearing riot gear and protesters were face-to-face by 8 p.m. on Foothill Boulevard, west of Day Creek.”
Three days later, roughly 4,000 people gathered in Downtown Riverside to protest against white supremacy and police brutality. With an ongoing pandemic, the majority of protestors were seen wearing masks while marching alongside one another. Volunteers were also scattered throughout Downtown Riverside offering hand sanitizer to protestors. Unlike Rancho Cucamonga's protest, the Riverside Sheriff Department was easily spottable early into the demonstration — placing themselves on top of buildings with firearms on full display.
In response to the city wide curfew, the majority of protestors dispersed by 5:45 p.m.
According to official Black Lives Matter accounts, there is no end in sight for protests across the Inland Empire.