BRIEF: White protesters march outside Billy Joel concert in support of Black Lives Matter
Juliette Polonsky, Pasadena in a during rally a local group calling itself Refuse Fascism rallies at City Hall in Los Angeles to denounce the violence and honor the victims in Charlottesville, Virginia August 13, 2017. (Francine Orr/ Los Angeles Times/TNS)
September 22, 2017
Hundreds of mostly white protesters supporting the Black Lives Matter movement marched outside the Billy Joel concert on Thursday night in downtown St. Louis.
Several cited systemic racism and violence as the reason they came out to protest.
Danielle Zoll, 31, is white and told St. Louis Public Radio that “it’s absolutely horrible that people are still treated unequally.”
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“African-Americans are getting killed by police and nothing is happening. They’re not getting the justice they deserve,” she said.
Protesters included the Rev. Darryl Gray, chairman of the Social Justice Committee of the Missionary Baptist State Convention. He said clergy supported the protest, and that the “civil disruption, disobedience and disturbance” is ongoing as promised.
Earlier concerts by U2 and Ed Sheeran were canceled because of concerns over civil unrest.
Protesters were watched by police. No arrests were reported.
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(c)2017 the Belleville News-Democrat (Belleville, Ill.)
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