March 28, 2024
Annapolis, US 49 F

Groups plan to rally on Sunday to ask City, County to declare “State of Emergency on Race Relations”

The Reverend Stephen Tillett, president of the Anne Arundel County branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People(NAACP)  announced today a consortium of organizations are sponsoring a rally at the Alex Haley-Kunta Kinte Memorial on the Annapolis City Dock on Sunday, June 25, 2017, 2:30 p.m. to support Anne Arundel County Councilman Pete Smith’s  call for the Governor, Anne Arundel County Executive and Annapolis Mayor to declare a “State of Emergency on Race Relations” in the State of Maryland.

Councilman Smith had recently issued a call following the tragic death of 2nd Lt. Richard Wilbur Collins, who was stabbed to death, allegedly by a Severna Park man. Lt. Collins’, death is being investigated by the FBI because of the assailant alleged ties to a white supremacist Facebook page.

In the State of Maryland studies have shown that African-Americans are disproportionately the victims of police shootings.

There have been an increase in recent months of nooses and other racially offensive material being distributed on college campuses, public schools and in communities through out the State of Maryland.

“The binary, two dimensional nature of public discourse in this country has created a dynamic where many people who are not brown are unable and  unwilling to acknowledge that there is a problem”, wrote Reverend Tillett in his recently released book Stop Falling for the Okeydoke: How the Lie of “Race” Continues to Undermine Our Country

The multi-ethic demonstration comes on the heels of the recent Minnesota police officer acquitted in the death of Philando Castile.

“We support Councilman Smith , because we recognize that there is there is a growing frustration and that racism must be addressed now by our elected officials”, said, Carl O. Snowden, convener, Caucus of African-American Leaders”.

 Other groups are also joining forces to protest racism in the State of Maryland. These groups include the Anne Arundel County branch of the NAACP, Caucus of African-American Leaders, Action Annapolis, Anne Arundel Huddle Network,  Anne Arundel Indivisible Coalition/Women’s March Regroup, March on, Showing Up for Racial Justice, Take Action AAC and WISE.

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