100 days is not long enough’: Protesters celebrate sending a sustained message against police brutality, racial injustice
Grosskreutz came wearing a cast and sling on his right arm, where he was shot.
‘100 days is not long enough’: Protesters celebrate sending a sustained message against police brutality, racial injustice
Ricardo Torres
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
A group supporting The Peoples Revolution marches from Johnsons Park on West Fond du Lac Avenue through the streets of Milwaukee on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2020. The group marked the 100th day of marching since widespread protests began in Milwaukee on May 29, four days after George Floyd, a Black man, died when white Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes during an arrest.
The moments before a protest march can be a bit disorganized, but on Saturday, as people gathered at Johnsons Park to mark 100 days of marching against police brutality and racial injustice, it felt more like a celebration.
Kids flew kites and swung on swings with their parents behind them. Teenagers and young adults played touch football. Others relaxed with their signs under the shade of a tree and listened to music. The event was sponsored by a group called The Peoples Revolution, which has been part of many Milwaukee area marches.
Danielle Washington, who spent part of the day chasing her 2-year-old daughter Victoria around the playground, said more work needs to be done to create the change she wants to see.
“It hasn’t been long enough,” Washington said. “We’ve been enduring such racism and brutality for centuries, generation after generation, I feel like 100 days is not long enough. But it is definitely long enough to send a message ... that we’re not tolerating such abuse and brutality and neglect anymore.”
Widespread protests began in Milwaukee on May 29, four days after George Floyd, a Black man, died when white Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes during an arrest.
Gaige Grosskreutz, 26, of West Allis, who was shot in the arm by Kyle Rittenhouse in Kenosha, holds up his arm before a march beginning at Johnsons Park in Milwaukee on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2020. Marchers called for an end to police brutality and racial injustice.
On Saturday, Washington was appreciative of the festive, family-friendly atmosphere.
“It’s important to me that she sees families engaging with one another and having a good time,” Washington said, referring to her daughter. “It’s been difficult sometimes for people to have a good time with this calamity going on around us, people dying, people getting evicted, there’s so much going on. So, this is something that we can enjoy together.”
During a rally before the march, no one got more of a welcoming cheer than Gaige Grosskreutz, the street medic who shot during a protest in Kenosha on Aug. 25. Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, of Antioch, Illinois, has been charged in the shooting, which also killed two protesters.
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Grosskreutz came wearing a cast and sling on his right arm, where he was shot.
“Words are difficult right now, a lot to process,” Grosskreutz said to the crowd of about 100 people. “At no point, regardless of the topic, whether you are for or against the topic that is being protested, nobody should fear for their safety.”
Grosskreutz thanked the protesters and said they are “the reason I’ve been out here, am out here, and still will be out here.”
“Long live the revolution,” Grosskreutz said at the end of his speech, lifting his right arm and making a fist above his head.
Afterward, Grosskreutz told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he is still processing what happened to him.
“This (expletive) hurts, for sure,” Grosskreutz said, wiggling the fingers on his wounded arm.
why wasnt grosskreutz charged with a crime?
Too bad this communist wasn’t dispatched for assaulting Rittenhouse. Ass had a handgun aimed at the kid.