Several Bay Area advocacy groups organized a demonstration Monday to stand in solidarity against police brutality as the jury selection of Derek Chauvin, the fired Minneapolis police officer charged with killing George Floyd in May, began Monday afternoon.
About 50 demonstrators stood in front of San Jose City Hall at 4 p.m. after the jury selection was paused and pushed back at least one day, according to a Monday CBS article.
Kiana Simmons, a member of Human Empowerment and Radical Optimism (H.E.R.O.) Tent, said the proceedings were delayed because the U.S. government is scared of the people’s power.
“They are scared of the wrath of millions of people who demand justice, as they should be,” Simmons said during the demonstration.
Chauvin was recorded kneeling on the neck of Floyd, who was unarmed, for more than eight minutes and is being charged with second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
The other three officers involved in Floyd’s death will be tried together in August, according to the same CBS article.
“[Chauvin’s] trial is not just symbolic of the people of Minnesota but for the people across the United States that suffered injustices from the police,” said Bash, who prefers to be identified by his first name and is a member of Anakbayan Silicon Valley, a local grassroots organization.
Adrian Bonifacio, a community advocate representative from Anakbayan Silicon Valley, said the demonstration stemmed from a nationwide call by The National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR).
NAARPR is a political organization founded in 1973 that aims to pursue action against unjust treatment based on race and politics, according to its website.
“We’re doing this in solidarity with Minneapolis,” Bonifacio said during the demonstration. “They had a huge mobilization today outside of their courthouse.”
Several grassroots advocacy organizations attended the demonstration: The Silicon Valley chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; Leaders for Education, Advocacy and Democracy (LEAD) Filipino; Black Liberation and Collective Knowledge (B.L.A.C.K. Outreach) and Students for Justice in Palestine at San Jose State.
Several members from the organizations spoke during the demonstration and highlighted racial capitalism, police brutality and racism as some of the biggest issues in need of reform.
Bash spoke with frustration about the continued acts of police brutality in the U.S.
“Imperialism is at its highest stage and racism is its conjoined twin,” Bash said.
Daniel Lazo, a member of LEAD Filipino, discussed the death of Angelo Quinto, an Antioch man who died in December after a police officer pressed his knee on Quinto’s neck, according to a Feb. 17 KTVU article.
“I saw myself in [Quinto],” Lazo said. “The same feelings I had with George Floyd and countless other Black lives.”
He said issues among minority communities and issues of police brutality are largely interconnected.
“A knee to the neck,” Lazo said about Quinto’s death. “I hate that this is all too familiar.”
Amer Vilogorac, club member of Students for Justice in Palestine at SJSU, said he hopes young college advocates keep community support prolific.
“The best advice I can give is collaborating with other clubs and making strong allies, especially when it comes to racial prejudice,” Vilogorac said.
