Demonstrations against racial inequity and police brutality continued yesterday (Monday) in downtown Bay City.
Patric Rodgis, a Black Bay Citian who has attended at least a half dozen of the protests taking place at the intersection of Washington and Center Avenue, says that while she is always happy to see community members supporting her right to live a life free from race-based harassment, she still doesn’t feel safe in her own home.
Rodgis and her three children, like the vast majority of the demonstrators, were all wearing masks. She says that rhetoric coming from the White House is as dangerous for people of color as it is for people who are at risk of serious complications from COVID-19.
“Our people are dying for literally nothing," Rodgis said. "That could be my son. That could be me. It’s literally every day and it’s not stopping. With who we have as president and everything he’s speaking, it’s been a lot worse.”
Rodgis added that despite the pandemic she feels she has to attend every protest she can until change occurs.