As protests sparked by George Floyd’s death continued across the country and world for a second week, people gathered in Wyoming communities big and small to express outrage at racial injustice, support Black Lives Matter and rally for a number of ancillary causes.
Protesters have gathered in the capital Cheyenne, amassed large crowds for vigils in places like Casper and posted up in pocket parks and avenues in smaller burgs like Pinedale, Lander and Cody.
Many have taken a knee or stood in silence for eight minutes to recognize the length of time a white police officer in Minneapolis knelt on the neck of Floyd, the African American whose subsequent death set off a wave of protests across America and prompted a nationwide debate about police reform.
Wyoming events have been largely peaceful, even as counter-protesters and armed civilians often observe from the margins. Though early protests in cities such as Minneapolis and Oakland led to riots, no Wyoming protests have reportedly escalated into violence or property destruction.
Many have been one-time rallies or vigils, but others — such as the nightly marches in Laramie — will continue until change unfolds, organizers say. Organizers there are working on a list of demands to local officials, they say. Protesters in Laramie and in Jackson have blocked intersections.
Many protesters have worn face masks to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, but some came with bare faces. Gatherings several times exceeded the statewide health limits set by Gov. Mark Gordon, who has ordered that crowds be limited to no more than 250. Roughly 500 people attended a rally in Sheridan, an estimated 700 came to a protest in Jackson and some 1,000 gathered for a vigil in Casper.
Gordon expressed support Wednesday for citizens to exercise their First Amendment rights and said he has not encouraged law enforcement to cite protesters for violating the state health orders.
“I respect the right, and appreciate the intent of all those who have spoken out, even if it is against decisions I have made,” Gordon said in a Facebook post.
However, he urged caution.
“Large gatherings of people do involve significant health risks and this risk has been identified both locally and nationally,” Gordon said in the post. “I encourage those who choose to participate in peaceful protests to practice social distancing and wear face coverings as much as possible. It is my hope and desire that we do not see additional infections and cases of COVID-19 in Wyoming due to the recent protests.”
Wyoming will carefully monitor the rate of infection over the next few weeks, he said.
Some people brought signs that touched on other Wyoming issues, like Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and the death of Laramie resident Robbie Ramirez at the hands of Albany County Sheriff’s deputy Derek Colling.
Some called for an end to mass incarceration and police brutality. Others showed their support for black lives, LGBTQ pride, veterans and trans people.
— Angus M. Thuermer, Jr. and Andrew Graham contributed reporting to this story.
The protests won’t fix the issues facing African Americans. Sure, a few bones might get thrown their way to keep them preoccupied until they realize that poverty has no political power. And poverty is at the root of most of the problems in the African American community, be it born from racism or the structures in place to maintain a status quo.
As Jon Stewart rightly pointed out in an interview with the New York Time Magazine, “The policing is an issue, but it’s the least of it. We use the police as surrogates to quarantine these racial and economic inequalities so that we don’t have to deal with them.”…..
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/06/15/magazine/jon-stewart-interview.html?
Our country’s economy was built on the idea exploiting and maintaining an impoverished class. The country still clings to that economic model. Wall Street celebrates low wages, the dismantling of unions, the loss of pensions, the lack of bankruptcy protections for individuals, the high price of health care, energy, housing, and transportation. Wyoming has used the low wages in its service sector as a selling point to the business community. African Americans are fighting a system that gets rich off of their suffering and wants to maintain that system.
Nothing much will come from these protests in regards to changing the foundation of the perceived and realized injustices. Rebuilding cost money. What you’ll get is a new law on choke holds. That’s a freebie.
George, you and Michael Krampner are absolutely right in my mind.
In that vein, I shake my head at the idea that getting an unemployment check for $600 a week is ‘too much’
” The administration believes they provide a disincentive to find work or return to
a job, according to Larry Kudlow, White House economic advisor.”
You wrote, “Wyoming has used the low wages in its service sector as a selling point to the business community.” Exactly. Perhaps raising the minimum wage would be more of an incentive to work, (once there is a vaccine for this crazy pandemic) to alleviate the poverty that occurs when one is making less than $2400/mo.
Though the protests may not fix the issues our country has, I am beyond proud of the response and I pray that there is more than lip service and a law against choke holds (though that is a start.) May all those people be sure they vote in local elections then hold the office holders accountable. If they continue to speak to power after the protests slow or stop, maybe there will finally be real changes.
Thank thank you for the coverage of the the demostrations in tis critical time in our nations history.
Peace Dave Racich
I appreciate WyoFile’s coverage of these important demonstrations.
Almost 60 years ago, at the March on Washington in 1963, MLK said among other things “We have no time for the tranquilizing elixir of gradualism.” Yet, here we still are.
These photos brought tears to my eyes. they are wonderful
I see the two armed guys in the back of the pickup truck are from Sanders County, Montana (#35). Is that where the photo is from? It looks like it may be from Missoula. What no “home boys” to capture an image of there in Big Wonderful Whyo?
Sharp eye Dave. The plates are, in fact, from Montana. The photo, however, is from a march in Laramie.