H-town rappers Bun B and Trae tha Truth joined throngs of people flooding Downtown Houston Tuesday for a march that ended at City Hall. The woman asked why we’d gone, and we told her. Bun B spoke again, saying, “We appreciate the Houston Police Department for standing with us today, but make no mistakes about it: we will hold our police department accountable, if they commit acts against the people of this city.” The crowd grew loudest at this and other calls for accountability: since 2015, there have been fifty-six fatal police shootings in Houston. “It’s good to be out there. A handful walked alone, carrying signs and adjusting face masks and hopscotching across the toasting pavement. Really. There were many “Brown Lives for Black Lives” signs. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated as of 1/1/21) and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement (updated as of 1/1/21) and Your California Privacy Rights. In Southwest Houston, a Vietnamese American businessman received death threats and a boycott when he put up a bilingual Black Lives Matter billboard. The event, however it went, would have international visibility. Copyright © 2021 KTRK-TV. Simon Kent 26 Jul 2020. One Dead After Shooting at Black Lives Matter Protest in Texas 17,047 Screenshot. At least one flash-bang grenade was reportedly fired. A woman’s sign said that she’d attended because black women need to be protected. A few hours later, we’d learn that—literally moments after we’d left the march’s epicenter—the police had notified everyone remaining, on loudspeakers, that the event was over. Trae tha Truth spoke. Protesters take a knee outside of a police building during a Black Lives Matter protest in Odessa on May 31, 2020. I saw several “Black Trans Lives Matter” signs. The civil-rights lawyer Bryan Stevenson examines the frustration and despair behind the protests. Something has to change.”. Bad faith comparisons between the attack on the Capitol and the Black Lives Matter protests over the summer ignore that only one of those has a legitimate complaint. Live report at 6 #Abc13 pic.twitter.com/JgF8WwQIEN, Powerful moment during protest for #GeorgeFloyd in his 3rd Ward neighborhood. Some walked in groups of twos and fours. The weather was hot and humid in the way that Houston gets this time of year, and the heat emanating from the crowd increased in tandem. Republican President Donald Trump criticized the protests and promised to restore law and order, although opinion polls showed Americans largely supportive of Black Lives Matter. A number of current and former public health officials also expressed concerns that mass protests would lead to a spike in COVID-19 clusters, including Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert R. Redfield, U.S. Protesters rallied in Houston for a prayer vigil and in Chicago Tuesday night. An official page dedicated to linking activists and supporters of the #BlackLivesMatter movement in Houston. Black Lives Matter Houston is an organization that addresses the issues that affects Black folks and collaborates with partners to build a healthy, educated and financially stable Black community. Once our segment of the crowd made it to City Hall, the pace stalled, and then stopped, and the marchers immediately took up chanting. The civil-rights lawyer Bryan Stevenson examines the frustration and despair behind the protests. Before the march started, Bun B had called for participants to kneel for thirty seconds of silence, in memory of Floyd. On July 9, Houston police fatally shot a black man who they said pointed a gun at officers. Everyone remaining in the area would be in violation of the law. It wasn’t long before most of the crowd began to disperse accordingly, but some folks, entirely peacefully, did not—and this was when the trouble began. We passed a man in a Joker mask waving from a stop sign, imploring passersby to watch where the money was flowing. 2 of 9 Mary Courtney takes a video during a protest about a Black Lives Matter billboard in parking lot at 11107 Bellaire Blvd. We passed one set of cops after another and then a set of city buses lounging under a bridge, with more police in riot gear bunched up beside them. But, at the end of the day, a man is dead. Dramatic footage uploaded to a Facebook Live feed showed the moment when shots split the night air in the Texas capital as some 100 protesters marched and … The diversity of the marchers can’t be overstated: from the midst of the crowd, it was easy to see why Houston is routinely referred to as the most diverse city in the country. One mounted officer in Houston trampled a … In the midst of mass unrest all over the States, Houston’s protests thus far had seemed considerably calmer: no curfew had been enforced; no mass destruction or disruption had taken place downtown; arrests had been made, three hundred and fifty in total, but they had looked nothing like the violent scenes of police playing out in other cities. We passed several groups of Latinx teens passing out water bottles, shuffling through coolers. The White Lives Matter protest comes at a tense time for Houston and the country. One sign simply read “Black Mama.” Many signs listed only names: Tamir Rice, Sandra Bland, Tony McDade, Atatiana Jefferson. Like no other news outlet, Unicorn Riot brings an intimacy and intensity to its coverage of the protests against police brutality following the killing of George Floyd. She pursed her lips, frowning, and I braced myself for what she was going to say. A street later, we crossed paths with a group of at least fifty college-aged folks, and, not even a block behind them, an even larger set of police. Police say waitress saved abused boy, Katy ISD football player hurt in crash will go home soon, Check out these FREE Houston-area events this weekend, ABC13's Art Rascon shares his COVID-19 experience, FBI Houston tracking down threats ahead of Inauguration Day, Novavax COVID-19 vaccine trial underway in Houston, Houston leaders call for peace as George Floyd protesters gather for 2nd day, Derek Chauvin, police officer accused in George Floyd's death, charged with murder, Mayor Turner asks residents to report anyone intending to do violence while protesting, Family members of George Floyd speaks out after protests in Houston. Even if it wasn’t stated explicitly in the march’s notice, it was understood that local officials had a lot riding on the appearance of peaceful proceedings. “People have had enough,” Salazar said. During Black Lives Matter demonstrations against police brutality in Washington, D.C., last year, law enforcement agencies were documented forcibly pushing back peaceful groups of protesters. On our way back toward East End, around five o’clock, we passed a handful of bars, where occupants were drinking and leaning on the patio gates, wearing jerseys and shades, and eyeing marchers (most of these folks were white), and also a group playing soccer on an indoor court, entirely removed from the proceedings—reminders of just what a massive city we live in. All rights reserved. Credit... Katy4Justice. One person was killed after shots were fired Saturday night at a Black Lives Matter protest in Austin, Texas, local police said. On Wednesday morning, the Houston police department announced that it had arrested more than two hundred people the previous night. NOW: Protestors have began a march along Emancipation Ave in 3rd Ward in honor of #GeorgeFloyd . Photograph by David J Phillip / AP / Shutterstock, Who, David Remnick asks, is the true agitator behind the, The Black Lives Matter co-founder Opal Tometi on what it would mean to. One white family’s signs read “We Repent.” (Noticing it, one of the teens walking beside me said, “That’s cute.”) A handful of signs said “Breonna Taylor.” At some point, it became clear that my phone wasn’t getting a signal. To revisit this article, select My Account, then View saved stories. Protesters in at least four cities have ridden horses during protests to cheers from the crowd. They had spray-painted a clenched black fist on it, with the words “Black Lives Matter.” A crowd of young protesters surrounding it whooped and cheered. Lil Nas X, of "Old Town Road" fame, retweeted a video of a group of people riding on horses to a Houston Black Lives Matter protest on Tuesday. Our ultimate goal is to pave a path for Black power and liberation where it is understood that ALL BLACK LIVES MATTER. Our makeshift group increased our pace a half step quicker. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. The mass protests occurred during the global COVID-19 pandemic and officials and experts warned they could facilitate an accelerated or rebounding spread of COVID-19. We passed a group of nine or ten cops on horses, each of them heavily armed. Texas Legislature 2021 session: 5 things to watch, New season of 'The Rookie' returns after May cliffhanger, George Floyd's daughter receives bedroom makeover, Potential jurors in George Floyd case asked if they support BLM, Woman charged after leading deputies to car with body inside, Here's how strong the cold wind will gust Friday, Biden unveils $1.9T COVID relief plan with new stimulus checks, Houston father hopeful for Biden's $1.9T COVID-19 plan, Dog involved in attack on 3-year-old girl now in custody, New York City bus left dangling from overpass after crash, 8 injured, 'Do you need help?' 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