Hundreds gather at Pierson Park on Thursday

Several hundred people gathered in Pierson Park in McKinleyville on Thursday to protest police brutality and support the Black Lives Matter movement.

The protests follow a number of similar ones that have taken place up and down the county and across the country in the wake of the fatal arrest of George Floyd by Minniapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who has since been charged with murder.

An open mic was made available for any attendees who wished to address the 300 or so people assembled.

A rally leader who did not identify themselves spoke to their experiences with systemic racism and oppression in the county. They detailed several accounts of harassment and discrimination.

“I should not have to shut my mouth because I disagree with being oppressed,” the rally leader said. “That’s what systemic oppression looks like.”

Another speaker, self-proclaimed to be born and raised in McKinleyville, said she’s stayed silent in the face of racism purported by “good ol’ boys” and others in her home town for too long.

“I’m sick of being silent … Black lives matter,” the speaker said to heavy applause.

A McKinleyville teacher who this reporter was unable to identify said they were proud of the strong community showing at Thursday’s rally.

“I’m so proud to work in this community but boy do we have a long ways to go,” the teacher said.

Thursday’s protest was a restrained one. Instead of protest chants, attendees honored the moment with their silence and paid hours of attention to speakers from all walks of life.

There was no police presence observed by this reporter Thursday.

Another speaker expressed frustration, “I want to reach the men in those big trucks driving by right now and I can’t.”

A male speaker who joked about his age — he said he was 72-years-old — spoke about politics and blamed Democrats Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi by name, for creating the country’s deeply embedded racism.

“We have to clean our own house before we start pointing fingers,” the man said to scattered applause.

Other speakers took aim at President Donald Trump.

“We have to get that despicable creature out of office,” a speaker said.

A handful of white speakers, all of who said they were from Humboldt

County, expressed their guilt for having participated or stayed silent during observed acts of racism throughout their life.

One of the final speakers who identified as a rally leader said, “we want to feel empowered in our community, rather than feeling meek and unseen.”