If you think mariachi bands are only good for playing at quinceañeras, you have not been paying attention. Mariachi’s are actually the secret voice of the people. Several instances of protest have been performed by mariachi’s recently and they’ve been amazing. Not just because they’re taking a stand, but because they’re dressed all the way up and playing music as a form of protest. It’s a beautiful sight. They’re basically superheroes without capes.
1. This group of mariachi performed their protest at Republican Senator Cory Gardner’s talk at a Chamber of Commerce event in Colorado Springs.
The mariachis played “¿Dónde Estás Corazón?” just as Gardner was beginning to speak and answer questions. The band was there representing the group “Americans for Conservation of the Arts” as well as the Latino community at large. A representative of that group had been trying to get a hold of the Senator who has refused to meet with constituents in a public forum according to CNN. They paid the $250 joining fee for the Chamber of Commerce just to interrupt it.
2. This mariachi band performed a remixed rendition of The Star Spangled Banner, outside the US embassy in Mexico City.
Mariachi performs national anthem outside of US embassy in Mexico City. Organizer told me it’s their “peaceful protest against the wall.” pic.twitter.com/aSGftoijGG
The protests were held in Boyle Heights’ Mariachi Plaza, which is 1) not a joke, they actually live nearby and 2) that’s probably the best place in the world for mariachi to protest (okay, maybe that last part was a joke). All jokes aside, though, many people came out recently to protest massive rent hikes. Rent has gone up for some residents of the area by 80%, which is an astronomical amount for the mariachi living in the area with families and lives to sustain from their art.
4. Mariachi music is all about love, but when they need to, they can use that love to fight injustices. Like when they protested at Trump Tower.
Cities across the U.S. are seeing a new wave of unrest following the grand jury’s finding on the Breonna Taylor case. Emotions are high as people protest against the lack of charges against the officers who were involved in Taylor’s death.
Protesters are raising their voices after the decision not to charge all of the officers involved in Breonna Taylor’s death.
At least 46 people were arrested in Louisville protesting the decision to not charge 3 officers for the police killing of #BreonnaTaylor.
▪️ Protests began mostly peaceful ▪️ Police fired chemical agents, flash bangs 30 min before curfew ▪️ 2 officers shot, wounded in clashes pic.twitter.com/VGc4bK1gyc
Breonna Taylor was shot and killed on March 13 when police raided her apartment. The 26-year-old ER technician was sleeping when the police executed a “no-knock” warrant. However, police had the wrong address and Taylor’s boyfriend, believe their lives were in danger, fired at the police. Taylor was shot and killed in her apartment that night.
Major cities across the country saw major demonstrations spurred by the anger against the justice system.
the views crossing the bridge are truly so spectacular, traffic was shut down from crossing the bridge for about an hour pic.twitter.com/CWxanS3ZiX
A grand jury found one officer responsible for wanton endangerment after firing his weapon into neighboring apartments. There were no charges tied directly to Taylor’s death. The lack of charges has angered activists and advocates who are seeking significant police reform to prevent tragedies like this from happening again.
People have become hyper-aware of the issue and are paying attention to the outcomes.
Protest signs in different crowds show that the American people are paying attention. The Black Lives Matter movement became the cause at the forefront of American mentality since George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis. Floyd’s death sparked national outrage and renewed energy into fighting to stop the disproportionate violence Black men, women, and children face at the hands of police.
Some motorists have turned violent against the protesters.
Video captured in both Denver and Los Angeles show vehicles driving through crowds of protesters. In Denver, the driver claims to have acted in self-defense after protesters surrounded his car. The driver claims that he did not intend to hurt anyone but reacted when protesters shattered his windshield.
In Louisville, police arrested the only Black woman in the Kentucky state legislature for protesting.
Police arrested Rep. Attica Scott, the only Black woman currently serving in the Kentucky state legislature.
State Rep. Attica Scott was arrested for first-degree rioting, which is a class-D felony. The Louisville Metropolitan Police Department arrested 24 people Thursday night while protesting the decision not to charge the officers. Rep. Scott was arrested with other and charged with first-degree rioting and two misdemeanors for unlawful assembly and failure to disperse.
“Our call to action is to continue to make sure that the city of Louisville understands that we will not go away, that we will continue to demand the defunding of police and the dismantling of this police department because it’s corrupt from the inside out, from the bottom to the top,” Scott told NPR before the grand jury decision. “And it cannot continue to function in the way that it does.”
Taylor’s death has mobilized the nation with celebrities and politicians calling for justice.
The fight for racial justice and a systemic change to our justice and policing systems is ongoing. The people are tired of being scared and are taking a stand with their protests.
If you are out there protesting, send us your videos and photos so we can see your activism in action!
Update July 24: The gun-wielding couple in St. Louis is facing felony charges for their actions against peaceful protesters. The couple could face four years in prison for the unlawful use of a weapon against the protesters.
St. Louis city prosecutor Kim Gardner has filed felony charges against the McCloskeys.
1/ Statement from Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner – Today my office filed charges against Mark and Patricia McCloskey following an incident involving peaceful, unarmed protesters on June 28th. Full statement below: pic.twitter.com/zPucQ3MHs5
The attorneys were photographed aiming a handgun and a rifle at peaceful Black Lives Matter protesters. The moment made national headlines because of the jarring image of two white people aiming weapons at people of color, who were not on their property.
“The decision to issue charges was made after a thorough investigation with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department,” Gardner said in a statement. “I am open to recommending the McCloskeys participate in one of my office’s diversion programs that are designed to reduce unnecessary involvement with the courts. I believe this would serve as a fair resolution to this matter. We must protect the right to peacefully protest, and any attempt to chill it through intimidation will not be tolerated.”
Republicans have attacked Gardner for filing the charges but she isn’t backing down. In the face of the harassment, 67 former and current prosecutors signed a letter defending her and her decision to file the felony charges.
Update: A Change.Org petition is asking for the McCloskeys to be disbarred after pointing guns at protesters. The scene from a BLM protest has become a visual representation of the racial tensions in the U.S. as the white couple aimed weapons at people of color peacefully protesting.
The McCloskeys neighbors have released an open letter denouncing them and their actions.
“Some of us choose to speak up following horrific events that transpired on Sunday evening near our homes,” reads the letter denouncing the horrific actions of the couple. “As the undersigned, we condemn the behavior of anyone who uses threats of violence, especially through the brandishing of firearms, to disrupt peaceful protest, whether it be in this neighborhood or anywhere in the United States.”
There is also a growing petition to have the two disbarred.
A quick online search shows that the McCloskeys have taken down their law firm’s website. It hasn’t made people forget that they are attorneys and broke Missouri law when aiming the firearms are protesters.
“The look in her eyes speaks volumes,” reads the Change.Org petition. “They need to be held accountable. Brandishing a weapon with intent (as clearly displayed in this photo) is a criminal offense when you are not in direct danger.”
Updated June 30, 2020.
Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner confirmed earlier this week that her office is collaborating with the police to investigate recent incident which saw a white couple waving guns at protestors over the weekend.
The middle-aged white couple became the fun, new, and trending Twitter hashtag on Sunday after they had been spotted wielding guns at protesters outside their home in St. Louis. Soon after the images of them began circulating Twitter dubbed them “Ken and Karen” and the stars of the “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” remake no one asked for. The incident occurred as protesters marched their way towards the home of Mayor Lyda Krewson.
The protesters demanded her resignation after she went public with the names and addresses of activists in a Facebook Live video on Friday.
Video of the incident, which took place on Sunday, shows the couple waving their guns outside their mansion.
The couple in the video, who appears to be dressed in their very bland versions of their Sunday best’s: a pink polo and khaki pants paired with an assault rifle for him and a striped T-shirt and capris with a handgun for her, have been identified by police as Mark McCloskey, 63 years old, and Patricia McCloskey, 61 years-old.
The pair can be seen screaming and shouting at protesters while pointing their guns at them. According to reports, the woman can be seen holding her finger on the trigger.
BuzzFeed reports that the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department identified the couple as victims in their police report. The statement asserts that the couple contacted police “when they heard a loud commotion coming from the street” and “observed a large group of subjects forcefully break an iron gate marked with ‘No Trespassing’ and ‘Private Street’ signs.”
In the report made to the police, the couple claimed protesters were “yelling obscenities and threats of harm to both victims” and that they took out their guns once they saw “multiple subjects who were armed.” Police did not say confirm the couple’s claim or indicate that there was evidence to prove protesters threatened or aimed guns at the couple.
The incident is a reminder of Missouri’s loose gun laws that permit the carrying of concealed weapons without background checks or permits.
The protests sparked after Krewson appeared in a now-deleted Facebook Live video on Friday.
In the video Krewson declared that she would not support = rising calls to defund the police. She also reportedly shared activists’ full names and addresses while reading off suggestions on how to better spend the city’s funds. After users ridiculed her online, Krewson apologized for her actions saying “Never did I intend to harm anyone or cause distress,” Krewson tweeted. “The update is removed and again, I apologize.”
In response to her decision to out activist and put them in harm’s way, local leaders and organizations called for her to resign. Over 45,000 people signed a Change.org petition demanding her resignation condemning her as “a risk for the safety and well being of the general St. Louis population.”
In a statement about the incident, Gardner asserted the right to peacefully protest.
“I am alarmed at the events that occurred over the weekend, where peaceful protesters were met by guns and a violent assault,” Gardner said in a statement. “We must protect the right to peacefully protest, and any attempt to chill it through intimidation or threat of deadly force will not be tolerated.”
Albert Watkins, the McCloskeys’ attorney, told USA TODAY in an interview that the circuit attorney is not “possessed of the legal wherewithal to understand some of these fundamental tenets.” He went onto lambast the notion that his clients acted unlawfully calling the suggestion “one which would demonstrate unequivocally the wholesale absence of appreciation for longstanding law in the state of Missouri.”
In an odd twist, Watkins has also asserted that the McCloskeys are actually lawyers who have worked on civil rights cases and are supportive of the Black Lives Matter movement. Speaking about their actions on Sunday, Watkins said that their decision to bring out their guns was sparked by “abject fear of imminent harm” but they were not race-related.
