Hundreds of Dartmouth residents turned out for a Black Lives Matter protest on Saturday afternoon near the Dartmouth Mall on Route 6 after the death of a Minneapolis man in police custody on May 25 sparked nearly two weeks of nationwide demonstrations.

George Floyd, a black man, died after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee onto Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes. The officers involved have since been arrested.

At the grass in front of the Sears on Route 6 on Saturday, people held signs and chanted as passing cars honked their support.

Although the crowd was mostly teenagers and twentysomethings, plenty of middle-aged and older adults also came out — and some even brought the kids along too.

Several Dartmouth Police officers stood around watching the crowd peacefully protest in the summerlike sunshine and humidity.

“Everyone who’s going by is honking,” noted New Bedford resident Billy Day. “It’s really encouraging.”

“I’m honestly overwhelmed with the amount of support we have,” echoed protest organizer Emily Harding of Dartmouth. “It’s such a good turnout.”

“It’s awesome,” agreed Harding’s childhood friend Amy McGonnigal. “I’m almost ready to cry.” 

The aim is not just justice for individuals who have died, but reform of policing in America to prevent more people of color from dying at the hands of those whose job is to serve and protect.

Protesters are seeking what they call the “Eight can’t wait” guidelines, eight reforms to police department policy that they believe will help save lives. 

Reforms include banning chokeholds and strangleholds and requiring de-escalation training and comprehensive reporting to record the number of civilians hurt or killed by police action.

During the demonstration, protesters chanted “Black Lives Matter”, “No justice, no peace,” and repeated names of black victims of police brutality.

And in the middle of a pandemic, almost all of the protesters were wearing masks.

“I think some things are more important right now,” said Harding about the coronavirus.

McGonnigal said that at first she was nervous that some people might try to stir up violence. 

“I was nervous that people that aren’t for this protest would try to show up and cause some trouble,” she said, adding that they had plans to de-escalate — although luckily they did not need to use them.

Some earlier Black Lives Matter protests were co-opted by rioters and looters in several major American cities, although the majority of demonstrations have been peaceful. 

Dartmouth resident Philip Smith said that he wasn’t just protesting George Floyd’s death, but also “400 years of white oppression of minorities.”

“Even though we have a small amount of people of color in this town, they still matter as much as we do,” said McGonnigal. “And it’s not okay that they didn’t have a voice.”

“I can count on one hand how many black students I remember graduating with,” said Kristen, who graduated from Dartmouth High in 2015.

“I have a black significant other, and I have black children,” said healthcare worker Soraia Amorim. “Even before that, I’m just big on injustice.”

Amorim added that as a healthcare worker, she was a little concerned about protests spreading Covid-19 in the midst of a pandemic. But, she noted, “I’m not crazy about it.”

“There’s a lot more people than I expected,” said Dartmouth High junior Isaiah Nichols. “It turned out really great.”

“It grew so much from what it was,” agreed fellow high school student Julia Gilchrest. “It’s nice to see that people are doing more than just sitting by and watching it happen. There’s actually change happening now.”

“George Floyd’s death was definitely the breaking point where we decided that enough is enough, and there needs to be serious systematic change,” Nichols added.

When asked why she was protesting, Dartmouth resident Brittany Baglini said simply, “I care.”