Black Lives Matter protest planned for Auckland in solidarity with US marches

May 31, 2020

Kiwis are joining the growing list of people around the globe marching in solidarity of the George Floyd protests across the United States. 

A Black Lives Matter protest has been organised to be held in Auckland's CBD tomorrow, marching from Aotea Square to the US Consulate near Britomart at the bottom of town. 

The group are calling on the New Zealand Government to "publically condemn the acts of violence and state-sanction murder against African Americans in the United States." 

The march is also intended to draw attention to the controversial discussion surrounding New Zealand police's ability to carry guns. 

Protestors are being encouraged to wear masks and gloves as well as adhere to social distancing measures to prevent any risk of Covid-19. 

As a result of the Christchurch terror attacks, a six-month trial of full-time armed police units were launched in October in Counties Manukau, Waikato and Canterbury. 

However, the move to allow police to be armed attracted criticism, with concerns the move could lead to shootings that mirror violence across the US. 

Earlier this week Police Commissioner Andy Coster said he was "fundamentally committed" to keeping police officers unarmed but Paifika and Māori remained concerned about what could happen if they are. 

The Black Lives Matter march begins in Aotea Square at 3:30 pm. 

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