As protests against racial injustice continue across the country, efforts continue at the local level to join in the fight and show solidarity at a time of historical significance.
On Sunday, between 1,500 to 2,000 demonstrators descended upon Memorial Park in Lansdale Borough for a three-hour planned protest. Like Tuesday night’s protest, the demonstrators remained peaceful throughout the duration of the event, though the tone of Sunday’s event was far more academic and informative than Tuesday night’s hours of group chants juxtaposed against moments of deafening silence.
The duration of Sunday’s protest was filled with an impassioned series of speeches from the event organizers, elected officials, teachers, performance artists, residents, students, and more. Some detailed their experiences with racism, some pledged their support for change and others laid the framework for how that change could manifest.
Though the occasional chant made its way through the crowd, this demonstration was far more intimate in its goal to draw negative personal experiences into the spotlight to be shared with all.
By 4 p.m., the rally had concluded and the majority of the crowd quickly dispersed, though some stayed behind to help breakdown the tents, equipment and pick up trash.
Sunday’s rally in Lansdale came on the heels of a similar demonstration in North Wales Borough, which occurred from noon to 1 p.m. on the same day.
Held at Weingartner Park with several hundred people in attendance, the event featured speeches and discussions from local religious leaders, elected officials and more.
Both of the weekend’s rallies were precipitated by a powerful demonstration by healthcare workers at Abington-Lansdale Hospital on Friday afternoon.
In an effort to both condemn the killing of 46-year-old George Floyd, as well as identify racism “as a public health crisis,” roughly three-dozen healthcare workers joined together outside of the employee entrance to the hospital to take a knee and hold an 8 minute 46 second moment of silence—representing the amount of time that Minneapolis Police Officer David Chauvin had his knee on Floyd’s neck.
See also:
Solidarity Rally Scheduled For Sunday At Memorial Park In Lansdale
Peaceful Rally Draws More Than 1,000 Demonstrators to Souderton
Lansdale Police Chief Reflects On Recent Protest, Says Demonstrators Should Be Praised
Hundreds Attend Peaceful Rally In Support Of George Floyd In Lansdale, Police Show Their Support
Lansdale Police Chief: ‘It’s Time To End Idle Talk And Move Towards Solutions’
