Over 11k At Protest In Troy

Over 11K people showed up to a peaceful protest in Troy, the Capital Region came out in masses for victims of racial injustice across the Capital Region and beyond. The historic protest took place on Sunday afternoon and organizers say the event had over 11k protesters. The event was one of many protests across the Capital Region and the United States, over the weekend.

The protest is in response to unarmed killings of African Americans across the United States, Recently the protest has been in response to George Floyd, a Minnesota resident who was killed on camera. The video was shared worldwide and really put the spotlight on police brutality and racial injustices in the United States.

In Troy, in April of 2016 an unarmed black man, Edson Thevenin, was shot by City Police Sergeant Randall French after a traffic stop. Protesters held signs up with Edson’s name listed amongst the national victims. This was the first recent protest, I have the opportunity to attend and the energy was amazing. There were people of all ages and races, peacefully protesting in one place.

Let me tell you this if you are only viewing the protest from social media, and the news you will miss the significance of these recent protests. The amount of people who are demanding police reform is reminiscent, to things I have seen in history books about the 1960s.

This was an amazing event to witness first hand. Police and volunteers even offered protesters free food and water. The event was peaceful and hopefully, it leads to progress on racial injustices throughout the Capital Region and the world. Check out some of the photos that I caught from the protest.