Protests against police brutality continued in the Coachella Valley Monday, this time in Desert Hot Springs, following a wave of peaceful demonstrations across the region last week sparked by the in-custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
More than a dozen people marched and played music peacefully along Palm Drive near Two Bunch Palms Trail in Desert Hot Springs Monday morning, , some toting signs saying “Latinx 4 Black Lives” and “You Can’t Kill Us All.”
“It’s just heartbreaking seeing that we’re not treated all alike,” a protester holding a sign saying “BLM 4 Eva” told KESQ. “If more and more people try harder and harder, it will come to an end.”
Another demonstration was scheduled for 5 p.m. at Ruth Hardy Park in Palm Springs.
Similar demonstrations, most of them problem-free, were held throughout the Coachella Valley last week and over the weekend, with a gathering Saturday at Ruth Hardy Park among the largest.
About 1,000 people turned out for the “Enough is Enough” protest organized by a group of eight teens who go by the name “Young Justice Advocates.” The hour-long program included various speakers, including Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Palm Desert, who encouraged the crowd to hold their elected officials accountable for police misconduct.
“(We) shouldn’t wait for an act of Congress, or for Congress to get its act together,” he said. “The sheriff is an elected official, accountable to you.”
Another demonstration is planned at Ruth Hardy Park next Sunday in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, according to organizers.