Protesters stream into US capital for mass anti-racism march

Washington (AFP) – Anti-racism protesters gathered for a mass march in the US capital on Friday, after a white officer’s shooting of African American Jacob Blake rekindled outrage over police violence and sparked a boycott movement in the sports world.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators are expected on Washington’s National Mall to mark the anniversary of Martin Luther King’s historic “I have a dream” speech which was delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963.

The same location was the scene of a lavish fireworks display on Thursday evening as President Donald Trump wrapped up the Republican Party’s pre-election convention with an angry “law and order” speech at the nearby White House.

Friday’s demonstration has been dubbed “Get Your Knee Off Our Necks,” in reference to George Floyd, who suffocated beneath the knee of a white officer in Minneapolis in May, igniting the most widespread civil unrest in the country in decades.

“I planned this trip a month ago. I got here a little after 6:00 am but I didn’t get much sleep last night. I hope for justice. I came to take the messages back home,” Gardner, a 47-year-old black woman from Cincinnati who gave only one name, told AFP.

Some store front windows were boarded up due to the threat of violence, and a heavy police presence blocked off streets.

Thousands of people streamed towards the event from dawn, with Covid-19 facemasks mandatory — but planned temperature checks abandoned due to long queues and large crowds.

Rights activist Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III, son of the late rights icon, will headline speeches at the Lincoln Memorial, starting late morning, before marchers head to the Martin Luther King Memorial.

After mass protests sparked by Floyd’s death, outrage has revived over the last week since Blake was shot multiple times in the back during a confrontation with police in the Midwestern city of Kenosha.

Blake survived and is hospitalized, but may never walk again, according to his lawyer.

– National anger –

Authorities identified the officer who opened fire as Rusten Sheskey, saying police were attempting to arrest Blake and had tried to subdue him with a stun gun. They added that a knife had been found in his car.

In the violent and chaotic protests that followed in Kenosha, two people were shot dead by a man with an assault rifle.

Authorities arrested a 17-year-old in the killings and filed intentional homicide charges against him.

Major sports teams and leagues called off games and matches to protest against racism and police abuse.

The NBA cancelled playoff games on Wednesday after the Milwaukee Bucks, whose base is near Kenosha, walked out.

“Change doesn’t happen with just talk!! It happens with action and needs to happen NOW!” tweeted NBA star Lebron James.

The WNBA women’s basketball league also postponed its slate of games on Thursday for a second day running.

In tennis, the ATP and WTA Tours called off the day’s play at the Western & Southern Open in New York, with the event resuming on Friday.

Several NFL teams also halted training camps as they build towards the start of their new season.

Trump, who is behind in polls for the November 3 election, has dismissed the wave of protests as criminal looting and violence — presenting himself a bulwark against social anarchy and a defender of the police.

The Department of Justice has announced an FBI civil rights investigation into Blake’s shooting.

But activists continued to demand action against police who shot Blake, 29, on Sunday as he tried to enter his car, with his three sons watching.

Don Carlisle, a black man in his mid-50s going to Friday’s march with friends, told AFP “we do a lot for this country, but still a lot of African-American individuals, male or female, are still treated unjustly.”

“(Police violence) not going to stop until we voice our opinion. We have been waiting for 300 years for equality.”