WGXC-90.7 FM
More protests Saturday, from Chatham to West Point, and Saratoga Springs to Beacon
Jun 14, 2020 6:33 am
On June 12, a 27-year-old African American man was killed by Atlanta Police while running away after a struggle in a Wendy’s drive-thru line that was digitally recorded. That led to the Atlanta Police chief resigning, and large protests and a small riot in the streets of the southern city. The video had not circulated everywhere by the time most local protests were held the next day. On June 13, protests began locally at 9 a.m. in Highland Falls, and at West Point where President Donald Trump addressed graduates at the U.S. Military Academy. More people rallied at 12:30 p.m. in Saratoga Springs at Congress Park, and several hundred turned out at 1 p.m. in Cohoes, according to the Times Union. Those protesters marched from Berkley Park to the Cohoes City Hall, passing Sam Gendron's house along the way. His yard was decorated with a "Blue Lives Matter" sign and a Thin Blue Line flag. After protesters chanted, "All lives matter when black lives matter!" Gendron confronted the group. "My family's been here since 1926 and we'll be here when you leave," Gendron told the crowd. "... Calm the (expletive) down. I have little kids in the house. I have to explain this (expletive) to a (expletive) 7- and 8-year-old." Later, at city hall, Cohoes Mayor William T. Keeler thanked the crowd for being peaceful. "Let's see what (Keeler) does about it," one organizer told the crowd. "Now we know who you are." There were other protests June 13 in Beacon and Saratoga and Chatham. Several hundred people turned out to the northern Columbia County town. Protesters posted videos online with some of the sounds of the Chatham protest. PLAY BRIEF EXCERPT OF CHATHAM PROTEST. On June 14 there are two protests planned at noon, two more at 1 p.m., and another at 1:30 p.m. At noon, Marlborough hosts a Let's Make a Difference Together! event in Cluett Schantz Memorial Park, and Hastings-on-Hudson also has an event. There is a Walk/Jog/Run for Change event at 1 p.m. in Gloversville at Darling Field, and a Tarrytown "We Don't Tolerate Racism" event at 303 South Broadway. And at 1:30 p.m. in Walden there is Black Lives Matter Protest and March in Bradley Park.