Thousands of Black Lives Matter protesters march in Brighton
11 July 2020, 20:28
Thousands of protesters have turned out in Brighton in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.
Demonstrators in the East Sussex city carried placards reading “decolonise everything” and “defund the police”.
Up to 5,000 people took part in the peaceful protest, Sussex Police said.
One man was arrested on suspicion of using threatening and abusive words which were allegedly directed towards the protest.
In Brighton, demonstrators set off along the seafront shouting "Black lives matter every day" and "UK is not innocent".
As the march passed the Brighton war memorial they were serenaded by a string quartet.
Gathering in their thousands at The Level after making their way north from the seafront, the protesters shouted out in unison: "It is our duty to do this every day.
"It is our duty to fight for racial justice. It is our duty to win. We are stronger together.
"We are here with love, peace and solidarity. We have nothing to lose - too many have already lost too much."
Last month, more than 10,000 protesters marched through Brighton in support of Black Lives Matter.
It comes days after outcry over a video showing a man shouting "I can't breathe" while being restrained on the ground by three police officers in the city.
Sussex Police said the man was arrested and became aggressive towards officers before being placed on the ground.
The incident has been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
Meanwhile, hundreds rallied at another BLM protest in Hull on Saturday. They paid tribute to Christopher Alder, who choked to death at a police station in the city in 1998.
His sister Janet told crowds: "I keep coming back and go over Christopher's story, until people make a change."
The anti-racism protests were the latest calls for change following a wave of global activism sparked by the death of African American George Floyd in US police custody in May.
