COMMUNITY GATHERS TO PROTEST POLICE BRUTALITY On June 1st, hundreds of residents from the communities of Menlo Park, Atherton, East Palo Alto, and Palo Alto gathered to protest police brutality and the recent killing of George Floyd. Led by sophomore Daniel Roman, the protest remained peaceful and orderly throughout. Beginning at 10:30 AM, a crowd began to gather at Burgess Park fi eld. Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, masks were mandatory and organizers encouraged people to practice social distancing by remaining at least 6 feet apart. People of all ages showed up with many families bringing their children along to join in the protest. Organizers were joined by the mayor of Menlo Park Cecilia Taylor, who encouraged youth to get more involved in the system in order to enact change. Th e police chief of Menlo Park, Dave Bertini, also spoke, announcing that cops were present to protect the safety of the protesters. Th e crowd soon broke into chants and then knelt in silence for nine minutes. Th e gesture mourned George Floyd’s murder, as nine minutes was the amount of time that Floyd was suff ocated to death by Minneapolis police offi cer Derek Chauvin. Following the moment “ “Young people need to think about how they want to be involved in of silence, the crowd commenced their march from Burgess Park to El Camino Park, chanting protest slogans along the way. Menlo Park and Palo Alto police blocked traffi c along the way to ensure the protesters had a clear path on which to march. Once at El Camino Park, the crowd listened to speeches from organizers who detailed the importance of solidarity for black Americans. Chant leader Henry Shane explained the preparatory process changing the system. Th e only way [to do it] is collectively. Th is has been a historic issue. And so we have to get our hands dirty. Get in offi ce, continue organizing, vote people out of offi ce that don’t represent you. It’s not going to change unless we do it together; our system needs to be rebuilt.” - Mayor Cecilia Taylor ” 5
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