Strike For Breonna Taylor Aims To Show Essential Role Black Women Play In American Economy
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A rally was held Tuesday in Manhattan on behalf of Breonna Taylor, as part of a nationwide strike.
People gathered in Zuccotti Park and called for action for the woman who was killed during a botched police raid in Louisville, Kentucky.
The protest was also a strike to show the critical role Black women play in the American economy, providing essential services, like Taylor did as an emergency room technician during the height of the coronavirus pandemic.
Similar events took place all over the country Tuesday.
Despite massive protests and repeated calls, no one has been held accountable for Taylor's death.
"I felt anger. I felt sadness," Brooklyn's Dannese Mapanda told CBS2's Christina Fan.
Organizers said the lack of justice shows the continuing, long standing reality of what it is like to live as a Black woman in America.
"It is time that this country starts to respect our bodies and our lives. We cannot accept a Black woman being murdered in her home," activist Keris Love said.
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The strikes aimed to show that Taylor -- and all Black women -- are essential.
"We are trying to show folks what it looks like when Black women are not of service to them," Mapanda said. "We are trying to show folks what it looks like economically when you strike."
"We do so much in our communities, so much in New York City, and we want people to be able to see how it is without us for one day, how we are needed," added Aisha Wilson of Teaneck, N.J.
Speeches featured prominent Black women in the community, and a march followed.
Organizers said people could express solidarity in a number of ways Tuesday, including wearing Taylor's favorite color purple, striking from work or staging a walkout.
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