BLACK LIVES MATTER ACROSS THE WORLD
The Largest Demonstrations In Australia Despite The Coronavirus Pandemic
Protesters rallied in Canberra on Friday, ahead of more than 60,000 Australians taking part in rallies in the nation’s three biggest cities, with Brisbane attracting the largest crowd of about 30,000 people on Saturday.
Despite the federal and state governments pleading with people not to attend these demonstrations and avoid new outbreaks of COVID-19, Australia saw the largest protest gatherings in decades.
Crowds gather in Brisbane for a Black Lives Matter protest. (ABC News: Tim Swanston)
“It was a peaceful protest, without any real concerns, and we were happy with how it went,” a Queensland Police spokesperson told the ABC. “Police were even handing out face masks to people.”
The Sydney rally of around 20,000 people came after the New South Wales Court of Appeal ruled in favour of a last-ditch attempt to lawfully authorise a Sydney protest. The last-minute decision meant those marching in Sydney were immune from prosecution for breaching public health orders.
Indigenous Black Lives Matter Too
Current events in the United States had inevitably refocused attention on Australian Indigenous issues. And the call to protest has resonated because of it. These are demonstrations of solidarity highlighted by local injustices and problems.
Events in the United States following the death of George Floyd have inevitably refocused attention on Australian Indigenous issues.(ABC News: Jack Fisher)
[In Australia] deaths of Indigenous people in custody continue — more than 400 over the past three decades — as does excessive use of force on occasion (which happened this week with a policeman’s reaction to the threatening language used by an Aboriginal youth in Sydney).
The high rate of incarceration of Indigenous Australians remains unaddressed; appalling conditions exist in many communities. Labor’s spokeswoman for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, herself Indigenous, said this week that “in some parts of Australia, particularly in the north, the incarcerated population — adult and juvenile — are almost all Indigenous”.
Australian Government’s Reaction to Protests
Senior Federal Government Minister Mathias Cormann has taken aim at Australian Black Lives Matter protesters, dubbing their actions “selfish”, “self-indulgent” and “reckless” amid the deadly coronavirus pandemic.
Deputy Opposition Leader Richard Marles said his comments were tone-deaf.
“I don’t feel like I’m in a position to say to Indigenous Australians, who are protesting against that, that this is a selfish and indulgent act,” he told the ABC’s Insiders program. “I felt uncomfortable about the mass gathering but I’m not about to engage in that kind of judgement of those who did it.”
Protests In European Countries
¨Large numbers of people took to the streets in European cities on Saturday to demonstrate in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, some defying restrictions imposed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The protests in capitals such as London, Paris and Berlin were the latest in a global wave of anger and revulsion at racism and police brutality, following the killing of black American George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis.
UK
People hold placards during a Black Lives Matter rally in Parliament Square in London, Saturday, June 6, 2020. – Copyright AP Photo/Frank Augstein
Thousands of people gathered outside the UK Parliament and the US embassy in London to protest against racism, despite official warnings to stay away for fear of spreading COVID-19 infections. Many wore face masks but the density of the crowd made it impossible to observe social distancing.
Demonstrators take part in a Black Lives Matter rally in Parliament Square in London, Saturday, June 6, 2020.AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali
The rallies were largely peaceful but in the early evening, some protesters clashed with police near Downing Street, the prime minister’s residence. Police brought out riot gear and mounted police charged at demonstrators to clear them from the area.
More demonstrations took place in Manchester and other cities in England, in the wake of similar protests during the week. Rallies are planned in Scotland on Sunday.
France
Another large demonstration took place in Paris, despite a police ban on the protest, the authorities citing the risk of spreading COVID-19 and fears of public unrest. The police decree noted that social distancing regulations ban gatherings of more than 10 people.
Preparing for the eventuality that protesters would ignore the ban, French police sealed off roads around the US Embassy early on Saturday.
A communique from the Prefecture noted that several calls had gone out on social media calling for demonstrations near the Eiffel Tower against “police violence”, despite a ban for public health reasons.
Crowds also turned out to demonstrate in other cities in France, including Bordeaux, Lyon, Lille, Rennes and Marseille — where some skirmishes were reported. The interior ministry estimated the number of protesters in France at 23,300, of whom 5,500 were in Paris.
Germany
Protesters in Cologne
Germany saw the largest crowds demonstrating in Europe. In Berlin, police estimated that 15,000 people gathered in the city centre for a Black Lives Matter rally on Saturday afternoon. As elsewhere, protesters held up signs with slogans such as “No justice, no peace”. The scenes were calm, though overnight on Friday police said several store windows were smashed and walls were painted with slogans referring to George Floyd’s death. Protesters also gathered in München (20,000), Hamburg (14,000), Cologn and other cities.
Black Lives Matter demonstrations were also reported from Italy, The Netherlands, South Korea
References:
ABC News: Mathias Cormann criticises Black Lives Matter protesters for gathering amid coronavirus By political correspondent Brett Worthington
ABC News: Coronavirus killed Indigenous referendum, delivers likely mortal blow to religious discrimination legislation. The Conversation / By Michelle Grattan
EuroNews: Black Lives Matter: Large anti-racism protests in Europe despite pandemic restrictions. By Alasdair Sandford with AP, AFP
11 Responses to “As Seen from Afar 06/07/2020”
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Wonderfully done, Lona!
Black Lives Matter Everywhere!
Such a fantastic turnout, world wide protests !!!
A fantastic post, Lona.
Thank you!!
Yes, BLM worldwide!!
From Malcolm Gladwell’s “David and Goliath:” “It has been said that most revolutions are not caused by revolutionaries in the first place, but by the stupidity and brutality of governments.” Seån MacStiofåin, the provisional IRA’s first chief of staff.
Stupidity and brutality, thine name is Trump! And, we amy be witnessing a social/cultural revolution as we live and breathe, right now.
Reportedly, many Republicans are doing what they can to distance themselves from the bastard. Colin Powell has castigated him, now, as well.
Trump’s partner in crime, Barr, is demonstrating how a religious fanatic and a sociopath (Opus Dei) can come together and find common ground:
https://www.rawstory.com/2020/06/this-is-what-tyranny-looks-like/?utm_source=&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=4727&recip_id=18832&list_id=1
“dubbing their actions “selfish”, “self-indulgent” and “reckless” amid the deadly coronavirus pandemic.” Yeah. Translation: Thank God for the pandemic; it lets us spin people sho actually give a damn into our kind. Good on you that it was seen through so fast.
At one time, France was one ot the safest, maybe the safest, place in the world for a person of color I realize that “for example” is not proof, but still, for example, check out Josephine Baker.
While I (as I’me sure do black people) appreciate the support from around the world, I hope the world-wide nature of these events will not do anything to normalize the use of force by governments against their own citizens. For that matter, to some degree, even in the US alone, white participation in black protests can become problematic. We are not living in the same world we were in the sixties. Again, for example is not proof, but, for example, the presence of white allies can unintentionally screen the presence of other white people who are not allies. I have bookmarked this article (and I haven’t even finished reading it yet) to try to educate myself. At my age that’s not so easy.
There is a composition from 2016 called “The Seven Last Words Of The Unarmed,” which heaven knows barely skims the surface, but the number seven was deliberately chosen to recall the seven last words of Christ on the cross. This is the premier. I found it very moving (OK, I’ll admit it, I cried from beginning to end.) That’s not the composer conducting – he didn’t feel that he could (and I can’t blame him.) Instead, he sat in the audience with Amadou’s mother and they cried together throughout.
This is the text of the seven movements:
“Why do you have your guns out?” – Kenneth Chamberlain, 66
“What are you following me for?” – Trayvon Martin, 16
“Mom, I’m going to college.” – Amadou Diallo, 23
“I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.” – Michael Brown, 18
“You shot me! You shot me!” – Oscar Grant, 22
“It’s not real.” – John Crawford, 22
“I can’t breathe.” – Eric Garner, 43
What a wonderful, expressive piece of music, Joanne. “Mom, I’m going to college,” really broke my heart. Thank you for posting it here, it is very fitting.
Bravo to all of these protesters. Appreciate them all, all across the world.
Black lives matter.
Matter of fact, All lives matter, no matter what color of their skin.
That’s the way I was taught and brought up by my parents.
Great posting. Thanks Lona
Thank you so much for this delightful article. To see such a world-wide response truly warmed the cockles of my heart.
[Sidebar: Cockles, in this instance, does NOT refer to a bivalve mollusc – but rather another word for chamber, as in the four chambers of our hearts. But why it’s good to warm them, I have NO idea.]
Your welcome, Nameless.
And thank you for the sidebar on warming the cockles of hearts. It’s been an expression I started using myself after I read it in an English comic strip because I loved it so much. It never occurred to me that it could refer to anything else than the barnacle-like growths on an old, hardened heart. Your explanation makes much more sense of course and I will continue using it.
If the cockles of your heart don’t get warmed from time to time, you get cold-hearted.
Thanks Lona–good summary. Yet one element I’ve been following is how the white supremacy infusion into both our own and other UK colonial conquests stems from that history. I’ve also read about protests addressing statues in the UK of philanthropists who made their money in the slave trade and Churchill’s beliefs in eugenics and white supremacy and the UK criminal justice data showing racial disparities much like in the US so many of theirs, like apparently in AU, are about institutionalized racism in the country where the protest is. This reason beyond solidarity would align with why so many and so large–so many voices here speak of the institutional racism killing as much as Covid19 and thus why they must act despite virus risks. Below is an example of press sharing some of the UK protesters’ concerns:https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jun/12/black-lives-matter-historic-moment-protesters-on-why-they-have-been-demonstrating