Black Lives Matter rally draws a peaceful, thoughtful crowd

WALLA WALLA-A grassroots group of people of color from the Walla Walla Valley community organized a second Peace Rally on Sunday, June 7 near Walla Walla's Land Title Plaza. With impassioned speakers and music, the rally gave a platform for people of color to be heard and for non-POC to listen.

The gathering attracted a larger crowd than the May 31 rally at the same location. Estimates of crowd size for both events vary from several hundred to over 2,000. There is no disagreement, however, to the fact that the crowd was peaceful and impactful. Diverse in age and color, all assembled safely on the sidewalks on both sides of the street.

Almost every person in attendance was wearing a facial covering, and there were volunteers in the crowd handing out spare masks to those who were without.

Thankfully, there were no disruptions to the event, except for a few well-meaning folks honking their horns as they drove by.

Organizer Lindsey Luna presented a powerful group of speakers and the sound system was adequate to communicate clearly to the crowd.

A second-grade teacher from Walla Walla shared a spoken word piece advocating for reflection and police reform. Jonathan Reid's spoken-word piece reflected on civil rights history, and called for the names of victims of police violence to be spoken aloud. Following this short piece, Cia Cortinas, a young woman who claimed her heritage as coming from one of the 'founding families' in the Walla Walla Valley, expressed her support as an educator, and for the liberating power of education. Jonathan Reid took the stage again to sing a haunting version of reggae musician Bob Marley's "Redemption Song," accompanied by a guitarist.

Following the designated speakers, the crowd was asked to kneel if they could, and be silent for eight minutes and 46 seconds, the same amount of time George Floyd was restrained under the knee of Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin on a Minneapolis street on May 25, 2020.

The rally organizers then invited people of color to address the crowd. The granddaughter of Patricia Garanzuay, who was a well-known Director of Social Work in Walla Walla, did so, as did a young, Black emergency room registered nurse who shared her fear about speaking out and urged those in attendance to do so. Speaking through tears, another young Black woman thanked the crowd for their support and called for unity. A 32-year-old military veteran commented that although he served six years in support of counter terrorism, he has "been in fear trying to live in this community."

Pedrito Maynard-Reid, professor of biblical studies and assistant to the president for diversity at Walla Walla University, warmly praised the organizers for creating the event saying, "This country will change, this world will change, once we recognize the power of young people. You've got to get out and vote, you've got to make your voice heard," he urged.

Luna then thanked the crowd and invited people to follow the Black Lives Matter Walla Walla Instagram and Facebook pages, where they will share resources and updates on further events.

The gathering drew to a close with the announcement that the organization will be partnering with local advocacy groups in the city to create a fact sheet and a tool kit for supporters and allies on how to engage in direct action. Following this, the crowd dispersed quietly, albeit to the rousing call of Beyonce's song, "Freedom," echoing over the loudspeakers.