ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Hundreds of people gathered in Annapolis for a memorial and vigil to honor the lives of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor.
The event was held downtown at the city dock where people who attended laid down flowers in front of a mural of Floyd to remember him and other police brutality victims.
“I look at these victims, and I see myself. I see my bothers and sisters," said Kyree Stinson, one of the organizers of the event. “I feel a sense of duty to bring awareness to the injustice to the systems in America.”
The vigil comes after more than a week of protests sparked by Floyd's death where across the country demonstrators have taken to the streets demanding justice, police reform and an end to systemic racism.
“We want a system where everybody can succeed, we want a system where cops cannot kill our bothers and sisters, our kings and queens and walk off free," Harold Floyd, another organizer said. “We are tired of fighting but that doesn’t mean that we won’t stop fighting until we get justice.
Several elected officials, including Annapolis Mayor Gavin Buckley, Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman and others were in attendance, promising to be apart of the change protesters nationwide are marching for.
“I have never seen what I’ve seen over the last seven days,” said Annapolis Mayor Gavin Buckley. “You are making history.”
The organizers of the event said the diversity at the vigil is a signal change is soon to come, but added it’s no time to rest until it happens.
“I know change is going to come because now we understand the message and most people understand the message and most people are willing to fight.,” said Lloyd. “We aren’t taking no for an answer this time.”
