Santa Cruz Police Chief Andrew Mills knew he wanted to stand alongside his community on Saturday.
So when the moment came to recognize the death of George Floyd at the hands of a white Minneapolis police officer, Mills, who has served as chief for three years, had every intention of joining the protesters on Pacific Avenue.
“I had already determined in my mind that it was the right thing to do,” Mills said in an interview Monday. He wanted to send a message not only to the community but to his department “that people understand, in a very visual way, that we are with the community and part of the community.”
In a photo captured by a local photojournalist, Mayor Justin Cummings, the first black man to serve in the position, and Mills are side by side, down on their right knees, surrounded by protesters carrying signs and nearly all wearing face coverings or masks. Mills wears his police uniform, no riot gear in sight.
Floyd died in Minneapolis police custody last week, triggering protests in cities nationwide. While law enforcement officers have ramped up efforts to control those protests, some police chiefs and leaders condemned the action of the Minneapolis officers and offered gestures of peace with their communities.
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It was 1 p.m. and thousands of protesters marching through Hollywood had arrived at Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street, where they came across National Guard troops and police.
Some in the crowd chanted, “Take a knee.”
After several minutes, at least two of the Guardsmen complied, as the crowd cheered and clapped.
One person yelled, “Thank you!” to the kneeling officers.
National Guard troops take a knee with protesters on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. pic.twitter.com/dwxjrYww9g
— Dorany Pineda (@DoranyPineda90) June 2, 2020
Other protesters encountered a line of police officers and began chanting, “Walk with us” and “Let us walk.” The group was trying to reach another crowd of demonstrators father up Hollywood, past Cherokee.
The marchers were met with a line of at least 20 LAPD officers who wouldn’t let them pass. As the group neared the line, hands raised, police began raising their batons to hold them back.
Later, at Argyle and Sunset, there was a tense exchange between protesters and LAPD officers. One officer shoved down a protester’s phone. Another threw a flower someone had placed in his pocket onto the ground.
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Enemies of the state, traitors
They should do their job objectively and not take any sides
LAW AND ORDER SERVICE MEN, not PROTEST SERVICE MEN
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