(Protesters marching down State Street in Salt Lake. Credit: Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News, Aug. 28, 2020)
SALT LAKE CITY – The 2020 March on Washington brings thousands of people to the nation’s capitol in support of Black Lives Matter, and similar marches take place in cities all over the country, including Salt Lake City. The marches are in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King’s famous March on Washington in 1963, and some participants say the country is still facing many of the same problems we did during King’s lifetime.
“Long live Dr. King,” one speaker said, to loud applause.
The march started at the Utah State Capitol in Salt Lake City, with between 100 and 200 people showing their support for Black Lives Matter. Some participants say they want to be on the right side of history when it comes to police use of force. One woman tells KSL she wants to speak against the recent shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin.
She says, “Utah stands in solidarity with the people of Wisconsin and with every Black person in this nation who deserves justice.”
After some speeches at the Capitol, the group then marched to Washington Square. Some speakers urged the group to remain peaceful, even if they feel they’re being provoked, because that is the best way to honor King’s legacy. The event was planned by Black Lives Matter of Northern Utah, Utah Against Police Brutality an Salt Lake Equal Rights Movement.
“It’s not just one organization. We have a bunch of organizations working together for unity,” one marcher says.
While marching, protestors chanted the names of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, who were both killed during interactions they had with police. Organizer Jacarri Kulley says recent shootings have brought a lot of attention to their movement. She was asked on KSL’s Live Mic with Lee Lonsberry if there has been any real progress when it comes to police reform.
“As far as when it comes to police relationships, no, because the same thing is still happening,” she says. “We just still don’t have the respect we need when it comes to the government and when it comes to the police and the way they’re trying to police civilians, the people that actually pay them.”
The AP reports thousands gathered in near the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. where King delivered his famous “I Have A Dream” speech.