Hamiltonians rally in solidarity with George Floyd protests against racism, police violence

Hundreds of people filled Gore Park on Monday afternoon for a rally against police violence in solidarity with protests being held across the United States.

The widespread demonstrations broke out after George Floyd, a Black man, died while handcuffed and a white police officer knelt on his neck.

Those who attended Monday’s rally in downtown Hamilton chanted phrases including “Black lives matter”, “hands up don’t shoot”, and “I can’t breathe” — the latter of which were among Floyd’s last words.

Michael St. Jean, a local business owner and co-organizer of Monday’s protest, said Floyd’s death instigated this particular rally, but added that racism is not an anomaly in Hamilton, where he’s lived his entire life.

“This type of thing doesn’t only happen in the States, it happens all around the world,” said St. Jean. “It’s in … clear sight. For me, it’s in clear sight.”

He said he’s glad to see that people of all backgrounds are becoming aware of the reality that Black people have lived for a long time, but added that he hopes those who are white don’t stop recognizing the importance of speaking up once the protests die down.

“I look around, I see a lot of different colours — I see white people, black people, all that — and it makes me happy. For everyone who is here, I would just hope when they leave here, that they keep the same energy and continue showing the support that they are today.”

Protest organizers marked the ground with chalk Xs and handed out hand sanitizer, masks and sanitized bottles of water to those in attendance.

The rally remained peaceful, with Hamilton police officers on bikes and mounted patrol sticking to the outskirts of the crowd.

Another rally was held at Gage Park over the weekend, although St. Jean said he and his co-organizers were not affiliated with that event.

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