Around 200 people met in the Plaza for a rally Thursday evening, June 11, calling attention to police brutality, racism and the murder of George Floyd and countless others at the hands of police officers.
Healdsburg city councilmembers Joe Naujokas, Shaun McCaffery, David Hagele and Vice Mayor Evelyn Mitchell and Mayor Leah Gold were also in attendance.
Demonstrators were clearly agitated with Gold, who spoke with constituents, but still faced the heat for her comments at a June 1 city council meeting when she said she didn’t feel there was a need to have a presentation on police policies. Since then, the city has agendized a presentation on police protocols and use of force policies set for their next meeting on June 15.
A large number of attendees chanted “Mayor Gold resign,” while a few others chanted “No” in response.
Others held signs with phrases such “Racism is a virus too,” “Defund the police” and ‘“If we are not carin’ we’re Karen.”
One protestor on a skateboard rallied the crowd by riding around the plaza encouraging participants to join in on chants such as, “No justice, no peace,” and “Hey, ho, racist police have got to go.”
Participants kneeled in silence for several minutes in honor of Floyd.
While last week’s June 4 march wound its way through the streets of Healdsburg Avenue, down Center Street and around the roundabout, the bulk of this event was centered in the Plaza, where folks also viewed a temporary art installation on racism that was strung up around the bandstand.
Lupe Lopez organized the art installation with her friend Cristal Perez earlier in the week on June 10. The event prior to the rally invited people to share their race-based experiences on a notecard. The notes were hung up in the Plaza for people to view.
Lopez told the Tribune in a June 9 article, “I think with everything going on in the country, this is a good time for the people of Healdsburg to just let BIPOC (black, indigenous, people of color) speak out and be heard.”
The cards explained residents’ experiences with racism. One card said, “While working at the AT&T store here in town, some white lady said that I wasn’t helping her because I was brown and only help my people.”
One card simply read, “Imagine a more inclusive Healdsburg.”
Another detailed an incident at a school in town, “White Healdsburg Junior High School P.E. the teacher pulled my (Mexican) cousin’s hair to get her to follow instructions in class.”
A microphone was also set up at the event, where people could share their thoughts.
“Let them know that we are tired of this,” one speaker said to the sound of cheers and applause. “Let them know that this needs to be over. Why are we still protesting this? Why is it still happening? Why do we need to keep on protesting? Because this s–t matters. This is real life. People need to realize that everyone, innocent people are dying for no reason, except for their skin color.”
