Police Chief Chris Magnus is protesting against police violence and he may be sending a clear message to all.
On Tuesday, Police Chief Chris Magnus protested alongside the many people who have gathered at MacDonald Avenue at 41st Street, echoing their call for authorities to stop using violence in communities of color.
According to Contra Costa Times, Richmond's police chief got a lot of attention when he came to join the protester voice out their message by holding signs and by loudly playing the speeches of Martin Luther King Jr.
"I've never seen anything like it, not in Richmond, not anywhere," Mary Square, one of the longtime residents of the area said of police chief Chris Magnus' protest. "All these police, and the police chief, holding signs calling for an end to police violence. ... I'm going to tell my kids."
Magnus wasn't alone as he also convinced some of his staff to join him in ending police violence against the black community.
"I spoke with my command staff, and we agreed it would be nice to convey our commitment to peaceful protest and that black and brown lives do matter," Richmond's police chief said after the protest. "And to help bridge the gap that we understand sometimes exists between police and community around certain issues."
While police chief Chris Magnus protested with the residents, he was photographed holding a sign that read "#BlickLivesMatter."
The snap landed on social media and it quickly got a lot of attention since the chief in uniform could be seen sending out the message of ending police brutality, reports ABC News.
Tuesday's protest was reportedly organised by RYSE Youth Centre members who vowed to show their distaste to what happened to 18-year-old Michael Brown earlier this year.
"It's important that Richmond be seen as part of this peace movement," RYSE Executive Director Kimberly Aceves told reporters. "Because black and brown lives matter, and because this country and this world continue to act as if they don't."
Apart from police chief Chris Martin's move to join the protest, the movement also sparked online buzz for its notable calm execution and the presence of leaders like Mayor Gayle McLaughlin and council members Jovanka Beckles, Jael Myrick and Tom Butt.
"We get the conversation about use of force, we get it," Deputy Chief Allwyn Brown said. "This is an opportunity for all police departments, including ours, to look inward and examine our approaches and get better."
Police chief Chris Magnus' protest with the residents and other officers stands in strong contrast to NYPD's attempt to get public sympathy by using a #ThankYouNYPD hashtag on Twitter and supposedly scheduling a "pro-cop" rally, which quickly backfired, according to Death and Taxes Mag.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
