'All We Want Is Change And Our People To Stop Dying': Thousands March Through NYC For Eighth Day Of Protests Against Police Brutality
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Thousands of people marched all around the city on Thursday for the eighth straight day of protests over George Floyd's death and police brutality.
Coming to Manhattan like a wave over the Brooklyn Bridge, thousands marched united.
"It's not only for George Floyd, it's for all the unarmed black people," one protester said.
Some protesters even arrived early on the Manhattan side, waiting to greet those marching in.
Protesters waiting near Foley Square to greet the large group of protesters expected to march over from Brooklyn @CBSNewYork pic.twitter.com/12qS40yll1
— Ali Bauman (@AliBaumanTV) June 4, 2020
"Not only are there protesters coming from Brooklyn onto the bridge, but they also have Terrence Floyd with them, George Floyd's brother. We want him to see that there are people waiting here for them, being there for them and the community is going to stand with them and we want to march together to get all the way to Foley," protester Joseph Martinez said.
RELATED STORY: Terrence Floyd, George Floyd's Brother, Thanks New Yorkers At Brooklyn Memorial Service
"We're dedicated to peaceful protest for legislative change. We're not the rioters. We are not the looters. We are the peaceful protesters that our only goal is not to show our anger and conform to the stereotypes they want us to be, but to show them we are not animals, we are human. All we want is change and our people to stop dying," said Livia Rose Johnson with Warriors in the Garden.
For hours and hours, they walked through Foley Square to SoHo, Greenwich Village up to Columbus Circle, moving swiftly around the grid, their message unwavering.
"We want an innovative police force for an innovated world we live in," Johnson told CBS2's Ali Bauman.
While it was the eighth consecutive day of protests in the city, it was the first day for Iesha Meyers.
"Protesting and being with my people makes me feel more united," she said.
RELATED STORY: 'We're Showing Respect For Protesters, But You Need To Go Home,' Mayor Says After Clashes Over Curfew
The 8 p.m. curfew came and went once again with many continuing to march in peaceful defiance.
"It's honestly just the commitment to the Black Lives movement, you know. So many people out here doing their part, it'd be an absolutely shame if I didn't do mine," protester Sam Kebede said.
"This is the change we need to do, so if it's past curfew, it's past curfew. I'm willing to take the risk," protester Pamela Galvev said.
Police seemed to crack down on the curfew even earlier than they had on previous nights.
Less than an hour after curfew, the NYPD started handcuffing about a dozen peaceful protesters on the Upper East Side.
8:30 arrests are starting tonight @CBSNewYork pic.twitter.com/lnWCQAbYIa
— Ali Bauman (@AliBaumanTV) June 5, 2020
It was still daylight when witnesses say a standoff began between police and roughly 500 protesters in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx.
A corrections bus took several people away.
It seems the curfew may have curbed the looting but has not deterred demonstrators, who say they plan to continue every day until there is tangible change.