A Black Lives Matter activist in Chicago warned late this week that people better meet their demands because they are going to get what they want regardless of whether or not people choose to comply.
The activist, who identified herself as Taylor Norwood during a different part of the press conference, repeatedly blasted Chicago Democratic Mayor Lori Lightfoot for allegedly “not protecting the black women in this city.”
Norwood appeared to accuse Lightfoot of “creating problems in black and brown communities to protect white people,” and claimed that Lightfoot was robbing them “of their right to vote.”
“This is our city, our city, and we’re taking that s**t back,” Norwood said. “We have demands, and they need to be met, and I feel like I’ve been saying this too much—we’re not asking you anything. We’re telling you what’s about to happen with your permission or not.”
“You can listen to us or you can get ran over,” Norwood said as she ended her rant. “And that’s all I have to say.”
WATCH:
.#BlackLivesMatter activist in Chicago: “We have demands and they need to be met … we’re not asking you anything. We’re telling you what’s about to happen with your permission or not. … You can listen to us or you can get ran over.” pic.twitter.com/yEXFT4LOv9
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) August 22, 2020
At the same event, another Black Lives Matter activist screamed at the media and society in general for caring about stores that were being looted.
“People are worried about looting, and there are literal lives being taken away?” she yelled. “There are people who are dying, and y’all are mad about people looting Mag Mile? Get over it! These buildings are insured.”
“Materials will come back, but we will not come back if they kill us!” she continued. “What do y’all not get about that? Gucci, Apple store, whatever it is—that stuff will be replaced, but we won’t be replaced. We lose our lives, people lose our lives every single day for this cause, and y’all are mad about the wrong s**t!”
TRANSCRIPT:
In the past two months, three of my sisters, my friends, have been arrested and brutalized by the Chicago Police Department. Our mayor has said nothing about it—our black, gay mayor is not protecting the black women in this city. I have a personal problem with that.
Alicia was arrested during the first protest downtown. Miracle had her teeth knocked out of her mouth. Alicia was thrown on the ground and beaten by several officers. These are women that we are talking about. These are women that are not committing any crimes except for exercising their First Amendment right to speak their voice. We’re speaking out against injustice, systemic racism, police brutality. We’re sick our brothers and our sisters dying in our communities, and the only thing that the mayor can do is sic her dogs on us? Is beat us? Is arrest us? Is steal our lives from us?
She’s cut of the Northside, completely cut off the Northside. Let’s just talk about the simple, the simple ways that we’re being dis-serviced [sic]. Because all of the exits are blocked off on any given day, it takes an hour and 30 minutes to get from the Southside of Chicago to the Westside of Chicago, on the express way. You are creating problems in black and brown communities to protect white people, and it shows, like we see you. We really see you for who you are; you’re not fooling anybody.
The answer to people fighting against the policies that you are putting in place is not to rob them of their right to vote, Lori! You can’t just throw felonies on everybody for speaking their mind. [Person arrested] has not been processed, he has not been released. We’ve been here for 12+ hours and she still has said nothing, nothing to community, nothing to the black organizers who were brutalized. We haven’t heard anything. This is unacceptable. This is our city, our city, and we’re taking that s**t back. Point. Blank. Period. End of discussion. We have demands, and they need to be met, and I feel like I’ve been saying this too much—we’re not asking you anything. We’re telling you what’s about to happen with your permission or not. I don’t wanna come out here again. I don’t wanna have to do this again. I don’t wanna take a day. I unfortunately was not at the action yesterday. I was actually taking a day between this organizing because it’s taxing work, because we are kids trying to grow up, and I took a day to myself to wake up to find out that my friends are being abused by the f***in’ police! You can listen to us or you can get ran over. And that’s all I have to say.