Demonstrations continued across Brooklyn this weekend as thousands of protesters took to the streets in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and to decry the recent police killings of black people across the country.
Saturday marked the tenth straight day of protests citywide — and the ninth in Brooklyn. The day of peaceful protests came on the heels of a mostly calm Friday evening, during which many demonstrators remembered Breonna Taylor — the Kentucky EMT shot and killed by police in early March — on what would have been her 27th birthday.
On Friday, approximately 40 people were arrested, according to authorities — down significantly from a reported 270 arrests the night before. At least some of those arrested on Friday were essential workers, according to reporters on the scene.
Cops could not provide details into Saturday’s arrest count, but said Monday morning that — for the first time since protests first broke out — cops arrested zero demonstrators on Sunday.
One of the weekend’s arrests included 44-year-old Queens resident Jacob Leiper, who was caught on video driving onto a curb and plowing into protesters on Saturday night near the corner of St. Johns Place and Brooklyn Avenue in Crown Heights.
Lepier struck at least one cyclist, who was taken to Kings County Hospital for an injured ankle, the Daily News reported.
On Sunday, more than a dozen separate demonstrations cropped up across the borough, including in Fort Greene, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Williamsburg and Bay Ridge.
BAY RIDGE, BROOKLYN. A parade of Protesters on Shore Road, letting the neighborhood know what it is. #BlackLivesMatter #BLM #BLMNYC #BayRidge #Brooklyn pic.twitter.com/9LD92vspP7
— Daniel, Son of Jim, Father of Jack and Simon. (@CalitTheCoolest) June 7, 2020
A kids-focused march also made its way from Grover Cleveland Playground in Ridgewood, Queens to Maria Hernandez Park in Bushwick — where New York’s youth peacefully milled about, donning signs and breaking into sporadic chants.
#KidsPeaceMovement settling in to Maria Hernandez Park pic.twitter.com/Lyy48VJRuj
— Angélica M. Acevedo (@angacevedo15) June 7, 2020
Famed movie maker Spike Lee also joined in on the demonstrations in Downtown Brooklyn, sharing a photo of the crowds on his Instagram with the simple caption “BROOKLYN REPRESENT.”
As in previous nights, hundreds of protesters descended upon the Barclays Center, before heading out again down Flatbush Avenue toward the Manhattan Bridge.
This group is headed down Flatbush Avenue, toward the #ManhattanBridge, after several hours of speeches, chanting and songs.#nycprotests #BrooklynProtests #nyc #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/FYSrAJWpy8
— Grant Lancaster (@grantlan145) June 8, 2020
Early Sunday, Mayor Bill de Blasio lifted the city’s 8 pm curfew, citing a relatively peaceful weekend.
