Lakewood George Floyd Protest Emphasizes Unity: Photos

LAKEWOOD, NJ — For 8 minutes and 46 seconds, they kneeled. They prayed. And they repeated the names. Sean Bell. Sandra Bland. Emmitt Till. Breonna Taylor.

George Floyd.

The crowd gathered in front of Lakewood's Town Hall on Saturday said the names of black men and women who have died in incidents with police in a protest sparked by the death of George Floyd.

The protest, one of dozens around the country that have sprung up since Floyd died on May 25 after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for 8 minutes, 46 seconds during an arrest following a 911 call reporting a counterfeit $20 bill.

Derek Chauvin, the police officer who was seen in multiple videos kneeling on Floyd's neck, was fired and has been charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter. Three other Minneapolis police officers involved in the incident have been fired but no charges have yet been filed against them.

The march, which began with a group at Lakewood High School and marched to Clifton Avenue and to the courtyard in front of Town Hall, was organized by Marquis Oliver, a 2013 graduate of Lakewood High School.

"We are definitely a united town," Oliver said after the demonstration ended Saturday. "And we showed it today."

"We showed how much we care about each other," he said.

That sense of caring was a constant theme among the speakers, who highlighted the issues that black Americans face and urged the crowd to support each other and fight for peace.

"Let's not come together for just some protest, but stick together to make change and a different narrative for us," said A'Liah Moore from neighboring Manchester, who is a member of the NAACP of Ocean County's Youth and College unit. She urged those in attendance to not only keep things peaceful but to also make sure their efforts to seek to eliminate systemic racism do not stop with just marching on Saturday.

"If we want change, we must be the change. If we want peace, we must demonstrate peace," said Moore, tears rolling down her cheeks as she urged a junior at Monmouth University. She urged people to make the most of the educational system to improve their lives.

Taking advantage of education and making efforts to improve that education were among the items highlighted by Jessica Moreland of Lakewood in a poem she wrote:.

"Systemic racism, that is how we live.
Death after death by this racism,
The hate that our oppressors give.
It is Sandra Bland who none of us believe committed suicide in her jail cell, and the police department
tries to persuade us otherwise.
It is Breonna Taylor sound asleep, shot dead before anyone could hear her cries.
It was Eric Garner who couldn’t breathe!
And George Floyd again, who couldn’t breathe!
The list goes on and on and on;
But that’s not the end to this, just see.
In the health care field it’s disturbing.
Black women, you are currently 3-4 times more likely to die in childbirth.
I’m out here but this pandemic has my fears burning.
Black people are four times more likely to die from Covid,
But nurses acting as whistleblowers are spilling the tea
that this is because doctors do not see our worth.
And don’t get me started on the school system,
And the systemic racism they deny.
You can visibly see the difference in funding when affluence and poverty collide.
And if you’re black and blessed to be in a well-funded school,
The racism is truly there.
Don’t be shocked to hear the word “nigger” and classmates constantly trying to touch your hair.
Don’t be shocked when your braids are banned.
Don’t be shocked if there’s politics in sports.
And definitely don’t be shocked when there’s barely any black history reports.
And us black people love to go shopping.
Our money makes the world go ‘round.
But when we shop, employees start stalking, calling security, but for what grounds?
Stop viewing us as suspicious. We are black kings and black queens.
And if we are going to fight this, the time is now while we see all of this unity.
It’s time for new laws to keep us protected day and night.
It’s time to support black businesses to keep our money from getting tight.
It’s time for a change.
It’s time for accountability.
And I pray that soon we will start to feel free."

Violence and looting, which have surfaced at other protests around the country, were not realized on Saturday in Lakewood, even though some downtown Lakewood businesses put up plywood on windows and doors.

"Don't do what they've done to us for far too long," Moore said, urging protesters to stay focused on remembering those who haved died.

Kamaria Vaughn, a Lakewood High School and William Paterson University graduate, also urged those in attendance to avoid violence.

David Patterson Jr., a Lakewood High School and Kean University graduate, also urged those attending to make the most of educational opportunities, as they played a role in breaking the cycle of those who end up in prison. He noted statistics show that children whose fathers have not graduated high school are more likely to see a parent incarcerated by the time the are 14 years old.

Patterson said he is working to break that cycle by completing his bachelor's degree at Kean.

But the biggest message was urging those in attendance to get involved. The NAACP was signing up voters and volunteers. One speaker urged those in attendance to become financially literate so they could understand what they need to do to secure their futures.

"They fear our equality," said Ivan Marks, another 2014 Lakewood graduate. "They fear our potential."

"It takes more than just one post, one hashtag, or one protest to make change," said Caleb Lewis, a Lakewood graduate.

Fred Rush, president of the NAACP of Ocean County, praised those in attendance, many of whom were young adults, saying their energy was something he had not seen in some time and would help create change.

"Let's focus on our history," said Kamaria Vaughn, a Lakewood and William Paterson graduate who addressed the crowd more than once and led the final 8-minute, 46-second remembrance of Floys and others who have died in fighting for equal treatment for black Americans. "Let's focus on our struggles. Let's focus on what Rosa Parks did."

"We're here for George Floyd, and if anyting happens after George Floyd, we're here for them too," she said.

See some of the scenes from Saturday's protest here:

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This article originally appeared on the Lakewood Patch