Rally for Jacob Blake held in Downtown South Bend

 

SOUTH BEND, Ind.--- South Bend Black Lives Matter held a rally for Jacob Blake Wednesday in Jon Hunt Plaza. The hour long demonstration looked to address police brutality and systemic racism.

"I think it’s just absolutely ridiculous that we have to keep fighting for racial justice in 2020," said Kayla Edsall, a protester. 

Wednesday's rally was organized almost entirely by young people who say they are fed up with police brutality.

"We stand here today because we believe that Black lives matter and that all life has intrinsic value,' said Gelasius Shakur, the event's organizer. "We want to see our humanity increase in progress and our humanity and nation increase in progress."

Following the rally, people wrote messages in chalk across the plaza.

People who attended the demonstration say this rally is only a predecessor to more action being taken in the fall to address systemic racism.

"A lot of us are going to be voting in this next election and it’s really important that we get out and vote for people who are going to represent us well and make sure that justice is served," said Edsall.