Multiple Juneteenth marches and protests are working their way through the nation’s capital, with most planning to converge later in the evening on the recently renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza across from the White House.
Members of Washington’s Wizards and Mystics basketball teams led a march to the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial. Backyard Band, legendary purveyors of D.C.’s signature go-go music, launched a rolling concert on a flatbed truck that headed downtown toward the White House.
“It’s still a protest, not a party,” organizer Ron Moten said. “We’re talking to people as we go and giving out information along with the music.”
Outside the White House, several hundred people gathered as blue skies started giving way to storm clouds.
“They can kill our leaders! Lord knows they have. But they cannot kill a movement,” activist Joella Roberts said over a bullhorn. “Don’t be scared. That’s what they thrive on — fear and ignorance.”
