Thousands turn out in Nashville to demonstrate against police violence, racism
Our running updates on Thursday's demonstrations against police brutali in Nashville are below. Protests appear to have largely ended as of 10 p.m. as storms swept through the region. Check Tennessean.com for more coverage.
10 p.m.
Small groups of protesters seemed to disperse late Thursday after a torrential downpour in downtown Nashville, bringing an apparent end to a miles-long march that wove through the city for more than five hours.
The march appeared to be peaceful, with no serious interactions with police reported.
9:20 p.m.
A smaller group of about 300 protesters is marching into town on Broadway, toward the honky-tonks, as heavy rain moves into the area.
8:51 p.m.
As a wave of potentially heavy storms approach the area, some marchers are headed down 11th Avenue North, toward the Gulch neighborhood.
8:30 p.m.
Hundreds of protesters have reached the Capitol, where they are taking eight minutes of silence for George Floyd.
8:15 p.m.
After looping around Germantown, hundreds of protesters are heading back toward the state Capitol.
The group stopped briefly on Jefferson Street after someone had an apparent medical issue. An ambulance arrived to cheers and took the person away for treatment.
The marchers then continued on.
7:50 p.m.
The group of protesters have paused their march in Germantown after a person apparently had a medical issue. Demonstrators cleared a path on the streets to allow an ambulance in.
7:35 p.m.
As they continued to march through Germantown, protesters were greeted with cheers, high fives and hugs. Police in the area blocked traffic as the crowd of hundreds spilled into the streets.
7:20 p.m.
After blocking Jefferson Street briefly, hundreds of marchers are heading through Germantown, a highly gentrified area of North Nashville that was one of the neighborhoods hit by the March 3 tornado.
7:10 p.m.
A smaller group of protesters chanting "No justice, no peace" and "Black lives matter" marched from Bicentennial Park to Jefferson Street. They laid down in the intersection with Rosa L. Parks Boulevard.
Nashville police officers on motorcycles blocked traffic.
7:05 p.m.
After a march of thousands ended in Bicentennial Park Thursday evening, a smaller group began marching toward Jefferson Street.
6:30 p.m.
Marchers in downtown Nashville ended their demonstration after more than two hours. People continued milling about in Bicentennial Park after the protest was over.
Meanwhile, a separate group of protesters in downtown Franklin circulated flyers demanding that the Confederate battle flag be removed from the Williamson County seal. Demonstrators there kneeled for more than eight minutes in honor of George Floyd.
6:10 p.m.
Protesters in Nashville have begun marching back to Bicentennial Mall, where their demonstration began. More than 10,000 people joined the protest, which was organized by a group of teenagers.
A separate protest is underway in downtown Franklin, where participants have laid down on the sidewaks of a busy street to protest police brutality and racism.
5:55 p.m.
Rain began to fall as protesters paused for a moment of silence on Deaderick Street.
The crowd of thousands stretched on for several city blocks and continued to grow as the group rose from the pavement and marched on, toward the Capitol. They blocked the rain with umbrellas and ponchos.
5:45 p.m.
As they made their way past the Tennessee Performing Arts Center and Legislative Plaza on Sixth Avenue, thousands of protesters laid down or sat on the pavement. Organizers said they would stay there for eight minutes in memory of George Floyd.
From the ground, they chanted the names of Floyd and other black people who police had killed.
Teenage organizers kept strict watch over the crowd, imploring them to stay together, drink water and maintain a peaceful presence as they pushed for an end to systemic racism.
5:35 p.m. update
A long line of protesters continued to march through downtown Nashville in the heart of rush hour, chanting "no justice, no peace" and closing streets as they went.
The crowd passed Rosa L. Parks Boulevard, Lower Broadway, Fourth Avenue and Deaderick Street on a winding route to the Capitol.
Youth organizers ran a tight ship, urging people to stay together as they went. Protesters briefly came face-to-face with a line of police in riot gear, but continued moving soon afterward.
5:15 p.m. update
Young people leading a protest of more than a thousand people urged the crowd to remain peaceful as they reached the honky-tonks of Lower Broadway. Police in riot gear lined the sidewalks.
Many in the crowd chanted "we will not be provoked" as they walked past the neon-lined bars at the heart of the city.
“We will keep each other close. We will keep each other safe," an organizer said over a megaphone. “Look out for one another.”
4:55 p.m. update
Protesters chanting "I can't breathe" took over streets in downtown Nashville Thursday as they marched from Bicentennial Park toward the State Capital.
The crowd of more than 1,000 filled Rosa L. Parks Boulevard and walked through the downtown corridor behind a massive "Black Lives Matter" sign.
Teenagers who had organized the Thursday demonstration led the emotional chants and asked the crowd to remain peaceful as they pushed for change.
“We need to change America," said Jade Fuller, who helped organize the event. "I want you guys to just see everyone.”
4:30 p.m. update
More than 1,000 people gathered at Bicentennial Park in the shadow of the Tennessee Capitol on Thursday afternoon.
Several of the teens who helped organize the event spoke and led the crowd in chants for about 30 minutes before assembling to march to the National Museum of African American Music in downtown Nashville.
Isaiah Edwards, 22, from Murfreesboro attended the demonstration and said he’d like to see changes with law enforcement.
“What would give a solution to all of this?" he asked. "If police ended up standing down and actually walking with their citizens.”
Original post
Protests continued Thursday as people gathered in Minneapolis to mourn George Floyd, a man whose death became a flashpoint in the national debate over racism and police brutality.
Activists planned demonstrations in Nashville and Franklin in the afternoon, demanding changes to policies they said are biased against black citizens.
The Nashville demonstration was organized by teenagers who said they were inspired by generations before them who harnessed the power of protests to push policies forward.
"As a member of the black community, seeing the state of our country, it's sad we actually have to fight for our rights even in 2020," said 16-year-old organizer Nya Collins.
"I know a lot of older generations say, 'You are too young to know.' Just because we are young does not mean we don’t know what's going on and that we don’t have the power to change."
Floyd, who was black, died last week in Minneapolis after a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes. The death spurred a wave of outrage and condemnation.
Protests swept through cities across the country, sometimes marked by police in riot gear firing tear gas and rubber bullets into large crowds as individuals set fires and damaged buildings.
Tennessee protests have been tense but mostly peaceful.
In Nashville on Saturday, a peaceful afternoon march was followed by destruction later in the evening, when some in the crowd broke windows and set fires in city hall. Police wearing masks and carrying shields deployed tear gas and arrested dozens.
Since then, there have been signs of both common ground and enduring anger across the state.
In Nashville on Monday, hundreds gathered for a vigil at the Capitol as state lawmakers returned to session. The crowd sang, prayed and chanted together before moving their group to the steps of the Capitol, singing "This Little Light of Mine."
They were confronted by lines of National Guard members holding their shields high. Then, after a protester asked them to put their shields down, they did.
On Tuesday, hundreds of citizens participated in a city council meeting, urging the members to cut funding from the police department and send more money to schools and social services.
While many members were sympathetic to the citizens' message, Vice Mayor Jim Shulman had a tense interaction with citizens in the lobby of city hall.
Jessica Bliss contributed to this report.
Reach Adam Tamburin at 615-726-5986 and atamburin@tennessean.com. Follow him on Twitter @tamburintweets.