POUGHKEEPSIE – In June of 2020, Robert Pemberton and Joe Stratford, founders of the Stop The Violence Movement (STVM) held a peaceful protest in Poughkeepsie after George Floyd died during an interaction with Minneapolis police officers. On Saturday, April 17, Pemberton is holding another rally in Poughkeepsie.
Pemberton told Mid Hudson News that the “How Many More” rally at Mansion Square Park is a response to the police shooting of Daunte Wright in Minnesota and the recently exposed Virginia incident in which police pepper-sprayed a black officer in the US armed forces.
“We are going to be civilly disorderly,” said Pemberton. “Police departments across the country are making substantial changes and reforms but black lives continue to killed by police. Enough is enough.”
Pemberton noted that the City of Poughkeepsie Police Department has been evolving long before the police reform movement surfaced. “The City of Poughkeepsie Police have been making changes that have become the foundation for departments across New York who are tackling the reform requirements.”
The rally, slated for 2:00 pm on Saturday, is likely to turn into a march through the city, according to Pemberton. “We don’t have a planned route for the march but I am coming in my John Lewis mindset.” Lewis was a Congressman from Georgia that played a major role in the civil rights movement, including the first Selma to Montgomery march in Alabama.
Pemberton said that participants are encouraged to wear masks and take other steps to reduce the spread of the Coronavirus.
