Hundreds celebrate charges against police
Citizens rally at Baltimore City Hall after announcement.
BALTIMORE — It was part dance party and part angry cry for justice.
The day after six police officers were charged in the killing of Freddie Gray, hundreds of people converged on City Hall for a largely celebratory “victory rally” Saturday. They danced in unison. They sang along to “Express Yourself” pumped over a loud speaker. They registered dozens to vote.
But there was also a sense among some in the crowd that charges would not have been brought against the officers if not for a riot Monday night — striking fear into the heart of the city establishment.
“Had it not been for the youth burning that CVS, we would not have had charges,” said Kwame Rose, an organizer who led a march of about 150 people to City Hall.
The case of the 25-year-old man who died in police custody in Baltimore has captured the attention of the world. Solidarity rallies also took place Saturday in cities across the country, including New York, Philadelphia and Washington.
Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby brought swift charges — including second-degree murder and manslaughter — against the officers involved in Gray’s arrest. Within hours of receiving the medical examiner’s determination that Gray’s death was a homicide, Mosby was seeking arrest warrants.
Gray died April 19, one week after he was injured in police custody. Mosby concluded that Gray had been illegally arrested and suffered a spinal cord injury while unrestrained in a police transport wagon. She said officers ignored his repeated appeals for medical help.
At the rally at City Hall, protesters held signs that said, “Running black is not a crime in Baltimore” and “Who’s policing the Baltimore City police?”
The marchers included people of all races, from Baltimore and out of state.
Lindsay Andreolli-Comstock, a Baptist minister from Raleigh, N.C., said she was there to “stand in the back and support” the people of Baltimore.
“It’s about listening, and the white community has not been listening very well,” she said.
Hours after Gray’s funeral on Monday, Baltimore descended into chaos.
Roaming gangs of mostly young men clashed with police in the streets, seriously injuring officers. Rioters tore open businesses and looted their stocks.
Maryland’s Gov. Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency and called in the National Guard, and state police requested as many as 5,000 reinforcements from neighboring states. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake instituted a weeklong citywide curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Since then, protests have been largely peaceful.
State Sen. Bill Ferguson, a Baltimore Democrat, said the curfew is causing more harm than good.
“We need to lower tensions on all sides,” Ferguson said. “The curfew is having a negative impact on communities and on businesses. The curfew has now transformed into another symbolic issue. The community has expressed its desire to move forward peacefully, and the public sector should respond in kind.”
Hogan said it wouldn’t be wise to withdraw the National Guard until he was sure the city was safe.
“We’ve still got some very big protests and demonstrations going on here tonight and tomorrow,” he said. “We want to make sure that people have the right to express their frustrations and their feelings in a safe manner. We want the protesters to be safe, we want the neighbors to be safe.”