Hundreds gather for Black Lives Matter rally in Annandale

What was planned as a small family-friendly Black Lives Matter march and rally by a group of Mason Crest Elementary School parents to teach kids about racial justice and the value of protest, attracted many hundreds of participants. 

After marching along Columbia Pike from Barcroft Plaza to the Mason Government Center June 8, there was a very long “moment” of silence, as the group knelt for eight minutes and 46 seconds, the amount of time a Minneapolis police officer knelt on George Floyd’s neck until he died two weeks ago. 

Children and teens were invited to share their feelings and inspirational quotes about racial injustice and the need for change. 

Fairfax County school board member and Mason Crest parent Ricardy Anderson was one of the organizers of the event. Her son read some of the names of dozens of African Americans brutally killed by the police or in police custody in recent years – Eric Garner, Breonna Taylor, Sandra Bland, Philando Castile, Tamir Rice, and many more.  

“We want you to know it’s not one incident,” or five or 10 or 15, said Anderson. “It is hundreds and hundreds of black American lives that are wasted every single day.”

While there are some police who do their jobs, Anderson said, “We have bad apples. We have a corrupt system that does not allow people to breathe.” Children need to be aware that “we have a system that is unfair and unjust.” 

“Racism is not just from the police,” Anderson said. “It’s at the grocery store, because when I leave, they ask to see my receipt. They don’t ask everybody in front of me. It’s when you have that black kid walking in the street in a hoodie and people cross the street. It’s when I have to tell my 6-year-old that a toy gun is not for him.” 

To the many kids at the rally she said, “It will take all of us to have progress. You cannot be a bystander.” 

“When you see bullying happening, don’t let it pass,” she said. “When you see name calling, don’t let it pass. When you see unfair treatment, don’t let it pass. When you see something, say something.”

“I have never been more optimistic than I have in these last few weeks,” Anderson said. “When you go back to school, I want you to recall this moment. This is history in the making.” 

Among the many youths who spoke, a senior at Annandale High School said, “This change starts with white people taking accountability for other white people.” Another Annandale student described an instance of bigotry where a teammate called him the N-word, and the coach “swept it under the rug.” 

Another student said one or two people don’t have power to change things but, “all of us together have the power to change the laws of this country.”                                     

Mark Wolz, a parent, urged students to “speak out, speak up, speak often.” 

Jocelyn McCullough, student body president at Justice High School, told the crowd: “I’m here because my father’s, mother’s, and little brother’s lives matter as much as any white person’s. I’m here because every black and brown man, woman, and child deserves equal protection under the law of these United States of America.” 

More than 50 years ago, her relatives were part of the Freedom Fighters, she said, “and now I’m here asking the same questions: When will America stop tolerating injustice, police brutality, economic oppression, and racism?”

McCullough said racism is embedded in the legal, education, and every system in America. 

“Black lives matter when white parents pull their kids out of the local public schools and send them to private schools with less kids of color,” she said. “Black lives matter when the school curriculum is sugar-coating history. Black lives matter when the prison system that put black people in chains is now profiting from detaining immigrants. Black lives matter when white students don’t have more than a few black students in their AP or IB class.”

“That no black student has been admitted to the illustrious Thomas Jefferson High School this year shows me we have some real work to do right here in Fairfax County,” she said. “We must demand justice. We must disrupt racism.”