Here in Australia
NSW Police are seeking to prohibit a Black Lives Matter protest in Wollongong through the Supreme Court of NSW.
Regardless of the outcome, protesters have vowed to proceed with the rally scheduled for 1pm on Saturday at the Crown Street Mall amphitheatre.
Vinil Kae, one of the organisers said on social media, “if they are successful in their claims, it will set the precedent that protest organisers can be slugged with tens of thousands of dollars in legal expenses by the NSW Police - purely for trying to exercise a basic democratic right.”
The Commissioner of Police sent a letter to organisers requesting to call off the rally due to health and safety concerns.
The Wollongong protest was asked not to march. Source: Facebook
This comes as Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced plans last week to allow sporting venues with a capacity of 40,000 or less to hold crowds of up to 10,000 in July.
While three Black Lives Matter protesters have tested positive for coronavirus in Victoria, officials have said they were not infectious during the rally.
Hundreds attended a on Thursday after the WA government passed reforms to the state’s fine default law - a change prompted by the death of Yamatji woman Ms Dhu.
Australia worked as a ‘US proxy’ pushing an “all lives matter” resolution against an inquiry into racism and police brutality at the UN Human Rights Council, The Australian reported.
Meanwhile in the US
The former police officer charged with the murder of Rayshard Brooks is expected to appear in court on at 12pm EDT on Friday.
Garret Rolfe faces felony murer and 10 other charges, but Fulton County DA Paul Howard said his office will not seek the death penalty.
The second officer involved, Devin Brosnan, is facing lesser charges including aggravated assault and violation of his oath.
The White House has defended its decision to proceed with Trump’s first campaign rally in three months on June 20 in Tulsa, despite concerns from officials that the rally may worsen racial unrest and spread coronavirus.
Republicans in the US Senate unveiled a law reform bill on Wednesday to rival more progressive legislation from the Democrats. The bill was crafted by the senate’s only black Republican.
Facebook has removed Trump’s re-election campaign ads with strikingly similar symbols once used by Nazis to mark political prisoners in World War II.
In the UK
Oxford University has said it wants to remove its statue of colonialist Cecil Rhodes, which has been a target of anti-racism protests in the past.
Europe
Police clashed with activists in Paris as thousands gathered to protest against racism and police brutality on the weekend.
The rally was organised by the Assa Traore, the sister of a young black man named Adama Traore who died in disputed circumstances after his arrest in a town north of Paris in 2016.
More than 10,000 marched through the city of Zurich chanting “No justice, no peace”, “Say his name: George Floyd” and “Black lives matter”. These protesters were joined by thousands more in cities across Switzerland.
In Asia
In Taiwan, more than 500 people gathered for a Black Lives Matter protest that also drew attention to the discrimination of the island’s own Indigenous people.
Indigenous Taiwanese make up less than 3 percent of Taiwan’s population, similar to the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples here in Australia.
Savungaz Valincinan, an ethnic Bunun from central Taiwan said that while Indigenous Taiwanese “might not face as direct threats to our lives or fear like black Americans face in the United States”, they face a lot of discrimination in the country, like people refusing to rent their property to Indigenous people.
A riot police officer in Hong Kong has been reprimanded by authorities after he was caught on film chanting “Black lives matter” and “I can’t breathe” while on patrol during a demonstration.
Thousands of demonstrators marched through the capital of Japan calling for an end to racial discrimination as they held up signs like “Racism is a Pandemic”.
Thousands of protesters have taken part in a Black Lives Matter march in Tokyo. Source: Reuters
In South Korea, the US embassy in Seoul draped Black Lives Matter banner on its building before tweeting, “The U.S. Embassy stands in solidarity with fellow Americans grieving and peacefully protesting to demand positive change. Our #BlackLivesMatter banner shows our support for the fight against racial injustice and police brutality as we strive to be a more inclusive & just society,.”
In Africa
Thousands took to the streets in South Africa last to protest police brutality after the deaths of 10 black people at the hands of law enforcement during the coronavirus lockdown.
This comes as new data reveals the virus is hitting black townships harder than areas once considered exclusive to white people.
- with Reuters, AAP
