Dozens in Cocoa marched Friday as part of the Black Lives Matter movement in a peaceful protest against police violence.
- Black Lives Matter marchers in Cocoa
- Marchers promised a peaceful protest
- Police were informed ahead of time
“If it’s not peaceful you are not going to get a solution. We”ll be right back where we started, if not further back,” said march organizer and local resident Amanda Freeman.
Marchers walked down Fisk Boulevard, where dozens of people honked in support.
“I want to see the people come together instead of people being pushed apart. I don’t want to see the things like what happened on Father's Day happen again,” Freeman said.
That's when Clarence Mahogany X. Howard, of Palm Bay, was killed in a road rage incident involving an off-duty Brevard County deputy. That deputy is now facing charges.
Cocoa Police were informed of the march ahead of time and had an additional 10 officers on duty to make sure everyone, from the marchers to those driving by stayed safe.
Police did post about the march on social media, and a few derogatory statements were made on that page prior to the march.
“I haven’t really seen violence egged on before, so when I saw those posts and all the likes and that kind of stuff, it’s just not cool, and I won't stand for it,” said Carolina Arellano.
Cocoa police say they will remove those comments from Facebook. Friday’s march was peaceful, and Cocoa police did not have any issues during the march.