“Defund the LBPD”: Protesters rally around the demands of Black Lives Matter Long Beach
32 minute readThousands of people gathered Friday evening at Harvey Milk Park, near the promenade in downtown Long Beach, for an anti-police brutality march organized by Black Lives Matter: Long Beach (BLM LBC).
With momentum from protests happening across the world and in Long Beach earlier in the week, protesters filled the park, lined the top of the adjacent public parking garage, and spanned across Third Street, effectively shutting it down.
“This is the real fucking Long Beach. Asians, Filipinos, Cambodians, Mexicans, all representing for us. And we’d do the same for them,” one protester told us.
Above the sea of heads were signs that read: “Defund the Police,” “No Justice, No Peace.”
Before marching en masse through downtown, speakers from a multicultural coalition of grassroots organizations addressed the crowd at the invitation of the BLM organizers.
Tahesha Christensen, of the indigenous-led mutual aid group 100 Acts of Kindness, started the demonstration by blessing the space.
Burning leaves of the white sage plant in an abalone shell, she let the smoke billow as she acknowledged the original inhabitants of the land, the Tongva and Acjachemem people. She then spoke of the American Indian Movement (AIM) and their history of Indigenous solidarity with the Black Panther Party. Christensen finished by singing the AIM song, which became popular to sing at protests in the 1970s after Wounded Knee.
Stefanie Lira from Gabriela South Bay, a grassroots group that advocates for Filipino women, expressed the organization’s support for Black liberation and fighting against U.S. imperialism and its funding of the military operations of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte. Among other accusations, he has been assailed for multiple human rights violations, including using death squads to kill people he alleges are drug dealers.
Another speaker, Porter Gilberg, a member of the Citizen Police Complaint Commission (CPCC), gave a scathing critique of the body he has been a part of for the past year, concluding that it is a “farce.”
“I look at cases of police violence and police brutality and I do not get to say one word about it,” said Gilberg, who is also the executive director of LGBTQ Center for Long Beach.
YOU CAN READ GILBERG’S FULL SPEECH HERE
Throughout the night, BLM LBC organizer Dawn Modkins led a call-and-response with the crowd. When she yelled, “Say his name,” the crowd yelled back the name of a person killed by police or suspected White supremacists.
“George Floyd” the crowd responded during one of these back-and-forths. Floyd was murdered on May 25 in Minneapolis after former Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds. Floyd was handcuffed, lying on his stomach, and repeatedly told the officer that he could not breathe until he became unresponsive.
Tahesha Christensen, of the indigenous-led mutual aid group 100 Acts of Kindness, started the demonstration by blessing the space.
Burning leaves of the white sage plant in an abalone shell, she let the smoke billow as she acknowledged the original inhabitants of the land, the Tongva and Acjachemem people. She then spoke of the American Indian Movement (AIM) and their history of Indigenous solidarity with the Black Panther Party. Christensen finished by singing the AIM song, which became popular to sing at protests in the 1970s after Wounded Knee.
Stefanie Lira from Gabriela South Bay, a grassroots group that advocates for Filipino women, expressed the organization’s support for Black liberation and fighting against U.S. imperialism and its funding of the military operations of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte. Among other accusations, he has been assailed for multiple human rights violations, including using death squads to kill people he alleges are drug dealers.
Another speaker, Porter Gilberg, a member of the Citizen Police Complaint Commission (CPCC), gave a scathing critique of the body he has been a part of for the past year, concluding that it is a “farce.”
“I look at cases of police violence and police brutality and I do not get to say one word about it,” said Gilberg, who is also the executive director of LGBTQ Center for Long Beach.
YOU CAN READ GILBERG’S FULL SPEECH HERE
Throughout the night, BLM LBC co-founder Dawn Modkins led a call-and-response with the crowd. When she yelled, “Say his name,” the crowd yelled back the name of a person killed by police or suspected White supremacists.
“George Floyd” the crowd responded during one of these back-and-forths. Floyd was murdered on May 25 in Minneapolis after former Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds. Floyd was handcuffed, lying on his stomach, and repeatedly told the officer that he could not breathe until he became unresponsive.
After a graphic video of Floyd’s final moments went viral and sparked outrage across the world, Chauvin and three other officers involved were arrested and charged in connection with Floyd’s death. Chauvin has been charged with second-degree murder while the other three have been charged with second-degree manslaughter and aiding and abetting second-degree murder.
On May 27, a statement from the Major Cities Chiefs Association which Long Beach Police Department Chief Robert Luna is a part of, expressed condolences and stated that, “Law enforcement must do better and hold ourselves to a higher standard.”
Since their inception, BLM LBC has given support, such as helping to organize marches, for a number of families seeking justice for loved ones killed by local police.
Pamela Field took the mic to tell her story. Her son, 39-year-old Donte Lamont Jordan, was shot twice in the back by the LBPD on Nov. 10, 2013 on the 500 block of West Anaheim Street.
Two of Field’s nephews met similar fates. One year after his cousin Jordan’s murder, Dante Parker was killed by a Victorville police officer after being tasered multiple times. Parker’s death also came just days after Michael Brown was killed by former Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, MO.
“Say his name!”
“Donte Jordan”
“Say his name!”
“Dante Parker!”
“Say his name!”
”Lionel Gibson!”
On May 7, 2016, near 21st Street and Locust Avenue, 21-year-old Lionel Gibson was shot and killed by the LBPD. Officers said later that they had reports of a man with an Uzi and had given Gibson a warning that he did not heed. His family disputes that there was any warning or time for him to put his hands up. It was later discovered that Gibson was carrying a toy airsoft gun.
“Say his name!”
”Albert Ramon Dorsey!”
From the stage, Modkins called through her bullhorn for a boycott of 24 Hour Fitness “for calling the cops on Albert Ramon Dorsey.” Dorsey was accused of trespassing and was naked and toweling off from a shower when confronted by the police in the locker room on October 29, 2018. There is audio but no video from the officers’ body cams of Dorsey being tasered and then shot. The Los Angeles Police Commission later said the two officers had violated department policy by not backing off to de-escalate the situation and calling for back-up.
After a graphic video of Floyd’s final moments went viral and sparked outrage across the world, Chauvin and three other officers involved were arrested and charged in connection with Floyd’s death. Chauvin has been charged with second-degree murder while the other three have been charged with second-degree manslaughter and aiding and abetting second-degree murder.
On May 27, a statement from the Major Cities Chiefs Association which Long Beach Police Department Chief Robert Luna is a part of, expressed condolences and stated that, “Law enforcement must do better and hold ourselves to a higher standard.”
Since their inception, BLM LBC has given support, such as helping to organize marches, for a number of families seeking justice for loved ones killed by local police.
Pamela Field took the mic to tell her story. Her son, 39-year-old Donte Lamont Jordan, was shot twice in the back by the LBPD on Nov. 10, 2013 on the 500 block of West Anaheim Street.
Two of Field’s nephews met similar fates. One year after his cousin Jordan’s murder, Dante Parker was killed by a Victorville police officer after being tasered multiple times. Parker’s death also came just days after Michael Brown was killed by former Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, MO.
“Say his name!”
“Donte Jordan”
“Say his name!”
“Dante Parker!”
“Say his name!”
”Lionel Gibson!”
On May 7, 2016, near 21st Street and Locust Avenue, 21-year-old Lionel Gibson was shot and killed by the LBPD. Officers said later that they had reports of a man with an Uzi and had given Gibson a warning that he did not heed. His family disputes that there was any warning or time for him to put his hands up. It was later discovered that Gibson was carrying a toy airsoft gun.
“Say his name!”
”Albert Ramon Dorsey!”
From the stage, Modkins called through her bullhorn for a boycott of 24 Hour Fitness “for calling the cops on Albert Ramon Dorsey.” Dorsey was accused of trespassing and was naked and toweling off from a shower when confronted by the police in the locker room on October 29, 2018. There is audio but no video from the officers’ body cams of Dorsey being tasered and then shot. The Los Angeles Police Commission later said the two officers had violated department policy by not backing off to de-escalate the situation and calling for back-up.
“Say his name!”
“Frederick Taft!”
Frederick Taft, a 57-year-old father and grandfather, was shot nine times in a bathroom at Pan American Park nearly two years ago. His killer remains at large.
His daughter Corie’s voice broke as she told the crowd, “I still recall that day like it was nothing … it’s still emotional for me, especially when I have to tell my only kids that papa’s killer is still out there.”
She went on to say his body was left uncovered for several hours, which further traumatized her and her family who had gathered at the park together prior to his murder. Modkins added that police failed to secure the perimeter of the park and instead only roped off the area directly around the bathroom.
Several factors led the family and BLM LBC to believe his murder was a hate crime and not a robbery gone wrong. His wallet was not taken. Racial slurs were found carved on a nearby bench. A White man was seen running out of the bathroom with a rifle. Nearby park-goers had also reported that they had been harassed by White men using racial slurs.
“We can’t only vote. We can’t only pray. We can’t only march. We gotta organize!” said Modkins at the protest after sharing Taft’s story.
“Say his name!”
“Frederick Taft!”
Frederick Taft, a 57-year-old father and grandfather, was shot nine times in a bathroom at Pan American Park nearly two years ago. His killer remains at large.
His daughter Corie’s voice broke as she told the crowd, “I still recall that day like it was nothing … it’s still emotional for me, especially when I have to tell my only kids that papa’s killer is still out there.”
She went on to say his body was left uncovered for several hours, which further traumatized her and her family who had gathered at the park together prior to his murder. Modkins added that police failed to secure the perimeter of the park and instead only roped off the area directly around the bathroom.
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Several factors led the family and BLM LBC to believe his murder was a hate crime and not a robbery gone wrong. His wallet was not taken. Racial slurs were found carved on a nearby bench. A White man was seen running out of the bathroom with a rifle. Nearby park-goers had also reported that they had been harassed by White men using racial slurs.
“We can’t only vote. We can’t only pray. We can’t only march. We gotta organize!” said Modkins at the protest after sharing Taft’s story.
“Say HER name!”
“Breonna Taylor!”
Friday’s protest fell on what would have been Breonna Taylor’s 27th birthday. She was shot dead by Louisville police on March 13 in a botched drug sting that targeted the wrong home. .The family has filed two wrongful death lawsuits. The officers involved were put on administrative leave but have not been charged with any crimes. The sound of the crowd singing “Happy Birthday” rang out several times throughout the evening.
Modkins stressed the importance of voting out the current LA County District Attorney before leading the chant “Jackie Lacey must go!,” a refrain that Long Beach and Los Angeles chapters of Black Lives Matter have yelled many times.
A protester that identified herself as “Liz from Long Beach” told FORTHE that she had chosen to attend, “Because I’m a Black life that matters. Straight up and that’s it, I matter and every Black life matters and that’s literally the fucking point. That’s all I have to say.”
HiDeHo comic book store owner Mauricio Manchuka held a sign that read: “My store was looted, I still stand with the protest. Black Lives Matter!”
His Santa Monica store, two doors down from this Van’s store, was robbed of what he estimates to be $40,000-worth of merchandise and fixtures. Manchuka told FORTHE that he and his co-owners “immediately agreed that merchandise could be replaced but Floyd’s life could not.” (A recent look at his GoFundMe shows that the store has raised nearly $44,000 since then.)
“Say HER name!”
“Breonna Taylor!”
Friday’s protest fell on what would have been Breonna Taylor’s 27th birthday. She was shot dead by Louisville police on March 13 in a botched drug sting that targeted the wrong home. .The family has filed two wrongful death lawsuits. The officers involved were put on administrative leave but have not been charged with any crimes. The sound of the crowd singing “Happy Birthday” rang out several times throughout the evening.
Modkins stressed the importance of voting out the current LA County District Attorney before leading the chant “Jackie Lacey must go!,” a refrain that Long Beach and Los Angeles chapters of Black Lives Matter have yelled many times.
A protester that identified herself as “Liz from Long Beach” told FORTHE that she had chosen to attend, “Because I’m a Black life that matters. Straight up and that’s it, I matter and every Black life matters and that’s literally the fucking point. That’s all I have to say.”
HiDeHo comic book store owner Mauricio Manchuka held a sign that read: “My store was looted, I still stand with the protest. Black Lives Matter!”
His Santa Monica store, two doors down from this Van’s store, was robbed of what he estimates to be $40,000-worth of merchandise and fixtures. Manchuka told FORTHE that he and his co-owners “immediately agreed that merchandise could be replaced but Floyd’s life could not.” (A recent look at his GoFundMe shows that the store has raised nearly $44,000 since then.)
Chauvin originally apprehended Floyd after suspecting him of knowingly using a counterfeit $20 bill. Manchuka recalled that he once was given a counterfeit bill but did not know until he tried to use it. He was outraged that Floyd would be brutalized for such a trivial offense.
Peter Morley, originally from Australia and holding a sign that read, “AMERICAN COPS, STOP BEING SHIT,” expressed his disbelief regarding law enforcement in his new country.
“This is the most advanced, richest place on earth and you have cops executing people in the street with impunity, that’s absolute nonsense.” Asked if this sort of thing happens in Australia, Morley responded, “Absolutely not, cop even draws their gun and there is an investigation.”
On Friday, there was no looting, burning of buildings, or firing of “less-than-lethal” projectiles by police. The police stayed in the background for the duration of the demonstration, stationing officers on motorcycles blocks away from marchers. Groups of National Guardsmen, which had dotted downtown for days, were largely engulfed by the crowd.
Protesters made an extended pit stop outside Mayor Robert Garcia’s residence on Locust Avenue. A young woman sang “Take My Hand, Precious Lord,” a spiritual hymn performed famously by gospel singer Mahalia Jackson, while a crowd in the distance, which perhaps could not hear her, was heard chanting “Fuck the Police!” before thundering “Shame Garcia! Fuck Garcia!”
Four hours after people had started assembling at Harvey Milk Park, the march ended at Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse on Magnolia Avenue, where a final round of speakers shared personal stories of police brutality over the cacophony of the crowd.
“Happy Birthday” was sung once again to Breonna Taylor, but this time it was immediately followed by a joyful rendition of Stevie Wonder’s 1980 version, written in honor of the late Martin Luther King, Jr whose assassination in 1968 also preceded nationwide unrest.
On Friday, there was no looting, burning of buildings, or firing of “less-than-lethal” projectiles by police. The police stayed in the background for the duration of the demonstration, stationing officers on motorcycles blocks away from marchers. Groups of National Guardsmen, which had dotted downtown for days, were largely engulfed by the crowd.
Protesters made an extended pit stop outside Mayor Robert Garcia’s residence on Locust Avenue. A young woman sang “Take My Hand, Precious Lord,” a spiritual hymn performed famously by gospel singer Mahalia Jackson, while a crowd in the distance, which perhaps could not hear her, was heard chanting “Fuck the Police!” before thundering “Shame Garcia! Fuck Garcia!”
Four hours after people had started assembling at Harvey Milk Park, the march ended at Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse on Magnolia Avenue, where a final round of speakers shared personal stories of police brutality over the cacophony of the crowd.
“Happy Birthday” was sung once again to Breonna Taylor, but this time it was immediately followed by a joyful rendition of Stevie Wonder’s 1980 version, written in honor of the late Martin Luther King, Jr whose assassination in 1968 also preceded nationwide unrest.
In regard to next steps and hopeful outcomes, a young Long Beach woman said “Abolish the police! You gotta start that shit from scratch. Period. It started from racism. You got to rebuild it completely, there is no reform.” When asked for her name, she said “I am Breonna Taylor.”
Zaine Drayton, frontman for the band WACKO, which warmed up the crowd before the speakers said, “I can only hope this is the beginning of all of us organizing and figuring out how to fuck shit up in the best way.”
The Long Beach band had originally intended to perform in front of City Hall but, after connecting with organizers, got their blessing to perform at Harvey Milk. Their performance was only a few minutes but their eruptions of punk riffs reflected the intensity of the protesters.
There was mural painting, free PB&Js being handed out, and the occasional blunt being smoked in the crowd. But along with the sometimes chaotic energy of the crowd, organizers stayed on message and called for specific demands while calling out individual elected officials.
According to a statement from BLM LBC, “It is time to divest from violent policing infrastructure and invest in strengthening Black communities.” They listed the following demands: persecute violent cops, defund police, give more community control over police accountability, and end the contract between LBPD and the Long Beach Unified School District.
The LA Community Action Network (LA-CAN) and BLM recently disavowed the newly popular #8CantWait proposed by an organization called Campaign Zero and supported by LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn and former President Barack Obama.
“The #8CantWait program exemplifies superficial reform,” LA-CAN said. “At first glance its eight proposed regulations seem fine, but on closer examination they are generally unenforceable.” #Reject8CantWait is now also trending.
The Long Beach City Council will meet virtually at 5 p.m. On their agenda is a proposal from four council members (Rex Richardson, Jeannine Pearce, Dee Andrews, and Al Austin) titled “A Framework for Reconciliation.” This framework has elicited both similar criticisms and popularity as the #8CantWait platform. Residents are encouraged to submit their comments here prior to 4 p.m.
FURTHER READING
(Names listed in the order they appeared in the article.)
Additional reporting for this article was done by Joe Brizzolara.
Updated June 10, 2020 with additional details about the protest:
BLM LBC is “a Black-led, women affirming, queer, and working-class affirming organization that seeks Black liberation, and accordingly liberation for all people.”
Leading a chant at Harvey Milk park for Tony McDade, a transgender man killed by police in Tallahassee two days after George Floyd was killed, organizers stressed throughout the evening that “All Black Lives Matter.”
The officer that killed McDade has not been named, much less charged, and much less attention has been given to his story. As noted by the Human Rights Campaign and countless queer activists; transgender folks, especially Black transgender folks, are routinely overlooked and under-reported on. We regret that being the case here as well.
erin@forthe.org
