500 Black Lives Matter protesters march from Baldwin to Merrick

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An estimated 500 people marched from the Baldwin Long Island Rail Road station today toward Merrick to peacefully protest police brutality and the death of George Floyd in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.

Nassau County police officers, who helped guide the march, shut down parts of Sunrise Highway to make way for the protesters, who, from Baldwin to the Freeport Long Island Rail Road station, walked along the sidewalk chanting phrases, including, “No justice, no peace!”

Hundreds more then gathered at the Freeport station before continuing down Sunrise Highway to Merrick. Protestors also took a detour to the Nautical Mile.

At Freeport's restaurant row, protesters took a knee for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, the time that Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd's neck.

They then made their way north to the Sunrise Highway and west into Merrick to the LIRR station there.

“I just wanted to lend my voice to the chorus of voices around the nation and the world,” said Baldwin resident Leah Sanders. “I couldn’t sit home, and I wanted to be a part of the movement — I wanted to be present. I’ve been donating and posting, but there’s nothing like physically being here.”

Many motorists passing by honked their horns and raised their hands in the air to show solidarity. The protest was one of at least 15 around Long Island planned for the day.

“We have to keep protesting and show them that black lives matter,” Baldwin resident Brandon Sanders said. “Because it’s not just one race that matters, or one thing that matters, it’s all of them. And they don’t realize that black lives matter so we got to tell them. We got to keep telling them and we got to do something about it.”

Before protesters marched in Baldwin, NCPD Deputy Inspector Michael Holfester told a small crowd, “We’re here with you, we believe in you.”

Andrea Neal, 22, of Valley Stream, organized the event after she saw videos of residents standing against Black Lives Matter protesters in Merrick last week.

Neal, who has attended several protests on Long Island and Manhattan, said she wanted to stand with local residents and their peaceful protests.

“Things have to change,” Neal said. “I don’t want to see neighbors taunting each other. This is a peaceful protest, and it’s bigger than Floyd and the four officers in his case. This is about all the stories that have gone unheard and all those who have yet to find justice from police brutality.”

The protesters chanted Floyd’s name, along with other victims like Breonna Taylor and Tamir Rice.

I’nyaah Burrell, who grew up in Freeport, said she was pleased the protests were continuing this week. She said that while similar protests have come and gone in the past, these protests were here to stay.

“We’re not stopping until we see real change across all platforms of law enforcement,” Burrell said.

“Floyd’s death was a catalyst to bring to light all these injustices to everyone,” added Julianna Codispoti, of Bellmore. “We’re already beginning to see some changes, so we have to keep going.”

G. Dewey Smalls, the vice president of the National Action Network Nassau County Chapter, said the movement’s growth is now worldwide, as is apparent by the marches across the globe. He said he was especially moved by murals of Floyd painted throughout Europe and the Middle East.

While Smalls said the national movement was important, he noted that Freeporters also needed to look at local cases, such as that of Akbar Rodgers, a Freeport man who was captured on video being wrestled to the ground and punched and kicked by Freeport Village police officers during his arrest in December.

“Why did we see this excessive force being used against him?” Smalls said. “The officers involved have yet been brought to justice. It’s unacceptable.”

Freeport Village Police Chief Ray Horton said village and county police officers were guiding the protesters to make sure they could march peacefully and exercise their First Amendment rights.