Black Lives Matter holds NYC march, rally with families of police shooting victims
MIDTOWN, Manhattan (WABC) -- Black Lives Matter demonstrators held a rally outside Trump Tower Friday, calling for police reform and transparency in high-profile cases.
The gathering kicked off with a Take Your Knees Off Our Necks march from Times Square, led by civil rights leader Rev. Kevin McCall and the Crisis Action Center.
"It will be 66 days on Friday and still there is no justice for George Floyd," Rev. McCall told ABC News. "And not only Floyd, but all these families from Abner Louima to the cases we're seeing now."
Marching with the group were Eric Garner's mother Gwen Carr, George Floyd's brother Terrence Floyd, Breonna Taylor's family, Abner Louima's family, Sean Bell's widow Nicole Bell, and others.
"We want true equality, we need true legislation, we need true accountability and transparency," Carr said. "So this is what we're here to stand up for today. Because even though laws have been passed, there's still pushback with the laws. They're trying to overturn the laws that have been already established."
Related: Oprah Winfrey honors Breonna Taylor with September magazine cover
"We must deal with all issues that affect black people as a whole," Rev. McCall said. "We cannot go to Washington, D.C., if we do not deal with issues that affect us here in New York City. We must mobilize in conjunction to get ready for D.C. by any means necessary."
McCall says he would like for the city to increase investments in social services and youth programs to help decrease crime rates amid the coronavirus pandemic.
"Before we had alternatives in terms of jobs, but because of COVID, we're now lacking those resources," he said. "We don't have those same options. So young people are turning to violence, and it's rapidly happening here in New York City."
Related: Players, coaches kneel for justice, equality before NBA's re-opening night
Black Lives Matter Brooklyn, the National Action Network, the Grand Council of Guardians in Law Enforcement, and the Neighborhood Violence Survivors Alliance are among the organizations that will participate in the protest.
----------
* Get Eyewitness News Delivered
