Black Liberation and Collective Knowledge (B.L.A.C.K.) Outreach San Jose led a protest against police violence on Thursday that began at San Jose City Hall and ended at the residence of San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo.
The date of the march was chosen to commemorate the 57th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963.
This protest was one of many that have been in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, which gained momentum over the summer after the death of George Floyd Jr. in late May.
However, B.L.A.C.K. Outreach San Jose made it clear that they were not a part of the movement.
“We were born from the Black Lives Matter movement here in San Jose, but we are not part of Black Lives Matter,” said Lou Dimes, B.L.A.C.K. Outreach San Jose president. “And what I mean by that is that saying Black Lives Matter is too minimal. It’s not enough.”
Dimes expressed that it was obvious that Black lives matter, but that he wanted more expression of Black pride and empowerment.
B.L.A.C.K. Outreach San Jose wants to focus more on the fact that Black people have persevered through racial injustice and continue to face it.
Moreover, the organization not only wants to highlight the injustice faced by Black people, but to embrace their strength.
Protesters arrived at San Jose City Hall around 6 p.m. with signs and banners calling for justice for the victims of police brutality such as Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman who was shot and killed in her home by police in March.
The event was also held in the name of Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man who was shot seven times by a white police officer in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Protesters were asked to put their middle fingers up in solidarity with the group as they chanted phrases such as, “No justice, no peace. Take it to the streets and fuck the police!”
Cars passing constantly honked in support of the protest.
Three protesters showed their support through music by playing guitar and djembe, a West African drum.
Joseph Caña, a musician and former San Jose resident, said he took out his guitar to play in late May when protests erupted over the death of Floyd Jr.
“Music is necessary in revolution and it helps lift people,” Caña said.
Other participants such as Queers United In Community Care Medics (QUICC Medics), Human Empowerment Radical Optimism Tent (HERO Tent), Black Guerrilla Coalition (BGC), South Bay Medics and Solution Bay Area came out in support of B.L.A.C.K. Outreach San Jose.
These groups provided resources to the protesters such as food, water, masks and medical attention.
Cat Sorokin, a member of QUICC, said her organization is just there to treat people and keep them safe.
“Obviously we’re not neutral by being here but we try to take a very serious approach of not meddling in the movement and not telling protesters what to do and more just saying, ‘Hey if you get in a fist fight or you break a window, we’ll treat your lacerations,’ ” Sorokin said. “And especially protecting them from the police because the police are being very violent and that’s what this is all about.”
Members of HERO Tent came out of their van with shields and explained that they were made to protect protesters saying they felt it was necessary after previous encounters with the police. They did not want to face any possible backlash that could potentially hurt a protestor.
“As we’ve seen in the past, [the police are] not very good at de-escalation and in fact escalate a lot of the situations we’ve been put in, so we would like to be prepared because they don’t protect us. We protect us,” said a San Jose resident and member of HERO Tent, who wished to be left anonymous.
A demonstration was given about these shields for volunteers who were to be at the front of the march to ensure safety and to minimize any difficulties that could have occurred.
Afterward, organizers of the event chose to speak on their reasoning for coming out.
“It’s unfortunate that we have to commemorate [the March on Washington] with another march for the same problem. It’s not just in loving memory. It’s for the same problem,” Dimes said.
The march moved from city hall to San Pedro Square Market, where organizers said they planned to "shut down" the square.
Protesters marched through outdoor dining and interrupted dinners to share narratives from voices in the march.
They spoke of experiences they’ve heard of “wrongful convictions” and how incarcerated people have been treated during the pandemic and wildfires.
Protesters shared a report from an inmate in San Quentin through an audio recording where he explained that the jail was not following COVID-19 safety regulations such as social distancing and access to hand sanitizer.
Some protesters expressed that they wanted those dining outside to hear their stories and “clear out that bill and fight with us.”
“That was very informative, very peaceful, and very productive,” said Jimmy Hillman, a San Jose State alumnus, who was dining in San Pedro Square during the protest., “I appreciated it . . . I enjoyed the protest because it’s important.”
After marching down the street, protesters took a break to dance to the song “Cupid Shuffle” by Bryson Bernard, a tradition among the B.L.A.C.K. Outreach San Jose events.
After this pause, it was announced that the march was heading to San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo’s house.
On the walk to Liccardo’s house, some protesters, who were said not to be affiliated with B.L.A.C.K. Outreach San Jose, began to spray paint messages in support of Black Lives Matter on sidewalks and city buildings like the superior court, showing disdain for police.
Protesters walked through residential areas and on 10th Street walked against one-way street regulations after being instructed to do so by the organizers to bring more attention to the events.
Many of the residents came outside of their homes or looked through the windows to see what was going on.
A small and controlled fire was ignited by protesters in a grass area in front of the mayor’s lawn.
Protesters, who were said not to be affiliated to B.L.A.C.K. Outreach San Jose, vandalized the mayor’s home by spray painting messages onto the walls and throwing red paint at the house, even hitting the Black Lives Matter sign that Liccardo had displayed from inside his window.
Mayor Liccardo did not make an appearance during these actions and some protestors speculated he left his house before the crowd arrived.
However, he was seen after the protesters left helping some members of the community who went to repair the house, according to a video surfaced on Twitter. They painted over the spray-painted messages and cleaned the windows that were hit with paint.
Before that, organizers told the group to disperse and encouraged them to go home, while they headed back to city hall.
Once back at city hall, some protesters who were spray painting the walls were met by city hall security who took photos of protestors committing these actions.
