The three-day protest began Thursday morning with a "Say Their Names" rally. Hundreds gathered in midtown Manhattan to hear relatives speak about their loved ones who were killed by police officers over the past several years.
#RiseUpOctober takes to streets of NYC against police brutality
LIVE NOW: https://t.co/hswUAO0FCf #SayTheirNames pic.twitter.com/aStZYfuDq4โ Ruptly (@Ruptly) October 22, 2015
Families of people killed by cops reading the stories of their loved ones in Times Square right now. #RiseUpOctober pic.twitter.com/VpN72LYj8kโ Keegan Stephan (@KeeganNYC) October 22, 2015
With the help of the Stop Mass Incarceration Network, the rally was organized by Carl Dix of the Revolutionary Communist Party and author and activist Dr. Cornel West.
TODAY 10AM, Times Square, NYC. A Public Reading & Remembrance: No More Stolen Lives; #SayTheirNames #RiseUpOctober pic.twitter.com/M1Pe9RztaCโ LiberatedPeople (@WeAreLiberated) October 22, 2015
The organizers said their goal was to organize "mass determined resistance" to a "matrix of oppression."
Follow #RiseUpOctober for 3 days of organizing and protests against police brutality
https://t.co/NuNRIamsks pic.twitter.com/fxVvOHyelfโ Artists Space (@artistsspace) October 22, 2015
Among the celebrities who endorsed the rally was director Quentin Tarantino, who at one point shared the stage with actress Gina Belafonte.
Gina Belafonte and Quenton Tarantino at #SayTheirNames #FreddeGray #GabriellaNevarez #MikeBrown #AkaiGurkey pic.twitter.com/dS1q2CwNL1 โ Linda Perry Barr (@lindaperrybarr) October 22, 2015
Faith leaders from a number of religious communities supported the gathering.
Our own @IdeasDoneDaily at #RiseUpOctober w/@PeterHeltzel & other faith leaders praying, calling for justice #BLM pic.twitter.com/MQ4Vyc6F67 โ Middle Church (@middlechurch) October 22, 2015
Also in attendance at the rally were members of the Raging Grannies, the New York chapter of a global movement promoting peace, justice and social and economic equality.
The raging grannies are in Times Square also to #SayTheirNames! #RiseUpOctober https://t.co/HV50yKI3Xm โ JamesFromTheInternet (@JamesFTInternet) October 22, 2015
Heavy police presence shadowed the event.
I kinda feel like I'm being followed... #RiseUpOctober #SayTheirNames #NYPD https://t.co/VvaLDkXPX9 โ JamesFromTheInternet (@JamesFTInternet) October 22, 2015
Thursday's march ended with a rally in Brooklyn.
#Brooklyn #NYC: Peace Poets here at #RiseUpOctober rally singing #ICantBreathe! #BlackLivesMatter #EricGarner pic.twitter.com/ETTDk2cvr5 โ Ash J (@AshAgony) October 22, 2015
Friday morning will see the "Shut Down Rikers" protest, aimed against the city's notorious prison, which is plagued by accusations of violence, brutality and sexual abuse.
The main event is scheduled for Saturday, October 24, with an 11 a.m. rally in lower Manhattan's Washington Square Park, followed by a march to Bryant Park in midtown.
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