Mediaboss Marketing

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- Hundreds gathered for a peaceful Black Lives Matter rally at the West Virginia State Capitol Sunday.

The rally was organized by the group Call to Action for Racial Equality and attracted approximately 400 people.

"We came out just to gather and make it clear that people do care about racial justice in West Virginia, and people really will show up and get to work on the things that matter," Takeiya Smith tells WSAZ, a college student and co-organizer of the rally. "We were planning this two months ago, and we got such a huge outpouring of support after Charlottesville, saying enough is enough. We're ready to show up."

According to officials with the Office of the Secretary Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety, an estimated 400 people turned out for the event. In a press release, officials said the rally "proved peaceful and concluded without incident."

There were no counter-protesters that showed up, but several dozen armed people who call themselves "Three Percenters" were present. They came from several different states and remained outside the rally to "protect free speech" and everyone at the rally.

The same group was in Charlottesville last weekend.

"We were pretty much humiliated and called every name in the book, as if we were apart of another group, which we were not," Bill Baistor from Maryland tells WSAZ. Baistor was one of the men who came to the rally in West Virginia and says he was also in Charlottesville during the chaos.

"We were pepper-sprayed. We were cussed at," he says. "When all we were doing was just protecting both groups' freedom, whether they liked what they were saying or not... Without the First Amendment, you're going to lose everything, and it starts there."

There was a skirmish after the rally ended between a group who was guarding the Stonewall Jackson statue on the other side of the capitol complex and an opposing group. Several dozen police officers moved in quickly and formed a line between the groups. The rally was not about the statue removal but came one week after calls for the statue to come down.

No arrests were made at the rally or during any of the activity that followed, according to police.

"The Black Lives Matter movement in West Virginia has been alive and well for over a year now, and you haven't heard of any incidents of us being violent," Smith says. "I'm proud of the people that I stand with."

Capitol Police, West Virginia State Police, Charleston Police, Charleston Fire, and the West Virginia Intelligence Fusion Center were all on hand.

"We work very well with these public safety partners, and these kinds of collaborations serve to make that relationship more successful going forward," stated Capitol Police Director Kevin Foreman.

See the rest here:
Black Lives Matter rally promotes equality, remains peaceful - WSAZ-TV

Colin Kaepernick while playing with the San Francisco 49ers / Getty Images

BY: Conor Beck August 20, 2017 11:51 am

Items related to NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick's national anthem protest and his other efforts to call attention to police brutality will be displayed at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History.

The collection will be part of a Black Lives Matter collection,a source told USA Today.

"The National Museum of African American History and Culture has nearly 40,000 items in our collection," Damion Thomas, the Washington museums sports curator, said in an email."The Colin Kaepernick collection is in line with the museum's larger collecting efforts to document the varied areas of society that have been impacted by the Black Lives Matter movement."

Thomas previously said that Kaepernick items to be included are a game-worn jersey, shoes, and a picture donated by sociologist Harry Edwards. He said they would be displayed within "one or two years."

The museum has previously come under criticism for political bias by making only a passing reference to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, who was appointed by a Republican and is one of the high court's more conservative members.

Kaepernick, who made it to the Super Bowl in the 2012 season with the San Francisco 49ers, has drawn national attention since 2016 for kneeling during the playing of the national anthem and for his outspoken political opinions. He is currently a free agent.

See original here:
Kaepernick Items to be Included in Black Lives Matter Collection at Smithsonian - Washington Free Beacon

Items belonging to Colin Kaepernick will be part of the Black Lives Matter collection at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture.

"The National Museum of African American History and Culture has nearly 40,000 items in our collection," Damion Thomas, the Washington museum's sports curator, told USA Today Sports. "The Colin Kaepernick collection is in line with the museum's larger collecting efforts to document the varied areas of society that have been impacted by the Black Lives Matter movement."

Justin Britt, who is white, put his arm on Michael Bennett's shoulder as Bennett sat during the national anthem on Friday night. Bennett had called for a white player to join the protest that seeks to call attention to social injustice.

Week 2 of the NFL's preseason featured the continuation of protests during the national anthem started by Colin Kaepernick last season.

1 Related

Thomas had previously told USA Today Sports that items would include a game-worn jersey and shoes.

Kaepernick, as a member of the San Francisco 49ers, kneeled during the playing of the national anthem throughout the 2016 season. The free-agent quarterback said he was protesting racial inequality and social injustice in the country.

Kaepernick was joined by several teammates and inspired players across the league to protest the national anthem, spurring a nationwide debate about the role of athletes on social issues.

Kaepernick was released by the Niners during the offseason. Several NFL players have stated that he is being freezed out of the league for his stance.

The museum, situated on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., opened to the public in 2016 as the 19th and newest museum of the Smithsonian Institution. Among the museum's featured sports items is a track warm-up suit that belonged to gold medalist Tommie Smith, who with teammate John Carlos famously raised black-gloved fists into the air during their medal ceremony at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City.

See the original post:
Colin Kaepernick items to be part of Smithsonian's Black Lives Matter collection - ESPN

John Bazemore/Associated Press

TheSmithsonian's National Museum of African American History will feature items relating to Colin Kaepernick's national anthem protest as part of itsBlack Lives Matter collection.

"The National Museum of African American History and Culture has nearly 40,000 items in our collection," the museum's sports curator,Damion Thomas,toldUSA Today's A.J. Perezon Friday. "The Colin Kaepernick collection is in line with the museum's larger collecting efforts to document the varied areas of society that have been impacted by the Black Lives Matter movement."

In May, sports sociologist and civil rights activist Harry Edwards toldUSA Today'sJarrett Bellhe had worked to acquire pieces of Kaepernick memorabilia to donate to the museum for a future exhibit.

"I said, 'Don't wait 50 years to try to get some memorabilia and so forth on Kaepernick'" Edwards said. "'Let me give you a game jersey, some shoes, a picture. ... And it should be put right there alongside Muhammad Ali. He's this generation's Ali.'"

Players across the NFL have followed Kaepernick's initial decision to sit or kneel for the anthem as a protest against racial injustice in the United States.

Seattle Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett haspledgedto protest during the anthem all season long, while Marshawn Lynch was spotted sitting for "The Star-Spangled Banner" during the Oakland Raiders' preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals last Saturday.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture, located in Washington, D.C., featuresan exhibitdedicated to sports that "demonstrates the centrality of African American contributions and challenges to contemporary American culture and politics."

Items on display includeTommie Smith's warm-up suit from the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, a statue of Jackie Robinson and Jack Johnson's boxing glove.

Continued here:
Colin Kaepernick Protest Items Shown in Smithsonian Black Lives ... - Bleacher Report

Houstons Black Lives Matter chapter is rallying tomorrow and some people are concerned it may get out of hand.

The Spirit of the Confederacy statue in Sam Houston Park is the reason behind tomorrows rally.

Ashton Woods is with Black Lives Matter and says the statue is not representative of Houston.

If Houston is the diverse welcoming city we all claim it is, we need to represent that to the fullest extent, Woods says.

Although the title of the event is Destroy the Confederacy, Woods says the rally is not meant to incite violence.

Black Lives Matter Houston has been in this city for three years, and every time weve had a protest weve been non-violent, we have not destroyed property, he says.

They will be hosting a deescalation training tonight.

Houston Assistant Police Chief Larry Satterwhite says the department is coordinating with Black Lives Matter Houston and is confident the demonstration will be peaceful.

Houston has a way of responding and a way of expressing their concerns without it going to violence, without it going to property destruction and thats something we can all be proud of, he says.

Satterwhite says officers have mapped out the rally space and are prepared if they need to separate counter protesters.

The group This Is Texas Freedom Force have announced that they will be attending the rally to oppose Black Lives Matter. TITFF recently protested in San Antonio against the removal of another Confederate statue.

Listen here for the full interview.

Excerpt from:
Black Lives Matter And HPD Plan For A Peaceful Rally - Houston Public Media