Protestors took over the Brooklyn Bridge as Unite NY stood with Portland (pics)

Protests against systemic racism and police brutality continue throughout the country, and the Unite NY protest, urging solidarity with Portland as Trump sends federal agents to quell protests there, kicked off from Brooklyn's Cadman Plaza on Saturday, July 25. Here's a statement from their Instagram:

We will not be silenced. Our voice is ours. Now we speak directly from our hearts and our minds without the need for approval. ⁣
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There will be those who will push for compromises in a rush to return to the 'normal'. That 'normal' is a past that comes at the expense of Black lives. Their normal is business as usual....their business. But our business is a new normal. A normal that includes justice and equality for all. Our normal includes our voice, loud and clear.

We have not achieved this yet. The pain, violence and sadness of the oppressive 'normal' hasn’t gone anywhere. We’ve seen this in LA. We’ve seen this in Ferguson. We’ve seen this in Minneapolis, We’ve seen this in Louisville. We’ve seen this in our own backyard. And now we’re seeing this in Portland. We are not finished. In fact, our voice must be louder than ever as elections near and the media pushes for normalcy. To be heard across the nation, to shake the walls of those in power, to see real change. We will be heard, from the outdoor dining tables, to the returning crowds on the boardwalks, ⁣
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Together, United, We will not be silenced.
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Bring your pots, pans, buckets, whistles, anything and everything that will make our outcries heard across the nation. ⁣
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Please share, show up, and donate to gather all protest groups, activists and friends.⁣ Be the Change. Stand United.⁣

From Cadman Plaza, where Gwen Carr, Eric Garner's mother spoke, the group walked over the Brooklyn Bridge, to Chelsea Piers. A full band, organized by Brooklyn Drum Collective, played Queen Latifah's "Unity," as an NYPD copter circled overhead. The marchers shut down the Manhattan-bound side of the bridge, and in the middle of it, the impromptu band stopped and jammed.

The All Black Expo and Justice Ride VIII also gathered in Cadman Plaza on Saturday afternoon. Check out pictures from there, and the march across the bridge, in the gallery below.

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photos by Stephanie Augello