Protesters who gathered in cities across the United States told CNN of their frustration over George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis.
“There needs to be change, officers need to be trained better,” one protester who was arrested in Atlanta told CNN’s Nick Valencia as he was being detained by police.
A lack of change and police reform are just some of the reasons people are enraged.
Chelsea Peterson, in Portland, Oregon, told CNN she demonstrated Friday night to “show my solidarity with my black brothers and sisters” as they face injustice.
“I protested for black men who are disproportionately arrested and convicted for crimes compared to their white counterparts. And I protested for black children that are shot over bags of Skittles,” she said.
Peterson said it was “not enough to simply share a post or use a hashtag” to insist that black lives matter.
“It was important for me as a white person to actually show up because it is our responsibility to dismantle the systems of oppression that we have created.”
In Minneapolis, Alicia Smith, a community organizer, told CNN: “There are no words in the English language that will convey the despair that I felt watching that man’s life leave his body and him scream out for his mother. I heard my son saying, ‘Mama, save me.’
“My kids are little boys, and my son asked me, ‘Am I going to live to be a grown-up?'” Smith said. “I’ve got to ruin his innocence and tell him how to exist as a young black boy in this country.”
Another protester, Craig Maxwell, in Charlotte, North Carolina, told CNN he turned out to demonstrate because he felt the need to step up his advocacy.
“I’ve been talking to several of my black friends the last day or two and hearing what they’re going through,” he said. “A lot of introspection and recognizing that I don’t put my money where my mouth is enough.
“Basically, I was there because they were there, if that makes sense.”
Mackenzie Slagle, in Oakland, California, said it was time for police brutality to stop.
“I don’t agree with breaking into all of the businesses, but I can understand the outrage after repeated incidents. We’ve peacefully protested all of those. It wasn’t until Minneapolis got violent they finally arrested a police officer.
“This is truly history in the fact that there’s actual action being taken against police brutality. I couldn’t stay silent and watch this happen again. I’m hoping this time our nation can see the severity of this climate.”