Antiracism Uprising Continues as Demonstrators Celebrate Juneteenth
HAVANA TIMES – Protests against racism and police brutality continue in cities and towns across the U.S. and around the world. In New York City, an estimated 10,000 cyclists rode in a 20-mile procession through Manhattan Saturday demanding justice for victims of police violence. The protest came a day after throngs filled the Brooklyn Bridge on a march marking Juneteenth — the day celebrating African Americans’ liberation from slavery.
In San Francisco, protesters painted “Defund the Police” in giant yellow letters outside City Hall, demanding Mayor London Breed divert police funding to community programs.
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union brought shipping traffic to a halt at 29 ports along the West Coast Friday, as dock workers marked Juneteenth with a one-day strike. In Washington, D.C., thousands marked Juneteenth with rallies, marches, and a protest on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
Protester: “Black people do not have freedom, justice or equality. We are slaves to the system. The system is founded by the U.S. government. I, as a Black man, and all Black people, we have options based on obedience.”
Meanwhile, in Geneva, Switzerland, the U.N. Human Rights Council agreed to commission a report on systemic racism and discrimination against Black people, though it stopped short of singling out the United States.