Bri, Cartina, & Nina.
Bri, Cartina, and Nina were three women I met who were protesting with their entire family. They talk about the importance of the protests to them as it was something practiced generationally, and that they wouldn’t want to be protesting with anyone besides their family. Interview below.
Bri, Cartina, and Nina Interview Transcript
T: Besides the obvious reasons, what brings you guys out here today to protest with everyone?
B: Um, I’ll go first. Really what brings me out here is just the fear of my brother and my dad and you know the black men in my life that are loved. I feel like we need to stand up for them so that we can be protected.
C: And I’m prayerful that – so I did this as a sixteen year old little girl and here I am forty six doing it again with my children now. And I just pray that this generation can help make a difference, but I’m going to stand with them until the difference is made.
T: I love that, for you?
N: Um, for me I feel like I owe it to my ancestors all the black men and women in my life to continue the fight that they had to fight. To continue out their legacy, their [inaudible] until we get our peace and justice because as it stand right now we haven’t gotten any.
T: That’s beautiful. And I relate to that because my brother and my dad and my family are also people that I really worry about, which is why I’m doing this. I see you guys are out here as a family how does that make the experience different for you versus people who are out here alone?
B: I’ll say for me it makes me feel more – It makes it a little more meaningful than being with my friends because it’s my family. So these are the people that I worry about the most. So to be out here with them it just to me show me our unity.
N: I just want to continue the legacy. I started this with my family. And now it’s even more important to me because I’m fighting for these guys and my grandbabies so it’s two generations after me that need me to stand for them, so that’s why I’m standing.
T: I really love that, did you have something that you wanted to add? If not that’s okay.
C: I just forgot the question, sorry.
T: I just said as a family, does it feel different being out here with your family and loved ones?
C: Oh, absolutely. I feel more secure being out here with my family because we’re all out here for the same reason. We’re fighting the same fight, we’re fighting the same cause. I don’t think I would be out here because I wouldn’t feel as safe.
T: I love that, and I guess my last question would be is do you guys have any advice for people who would be too afraid to speak out or afraid to stand up for our rights?
N: Yeah uh, I do. My advice would be if you can’t speak, write. If you can’t write, vote. That at the end of the day, if you do nothing else, let your voice be heard through your vote.
B: I would say, just don’t be scared. Just go for it. If you feel it in your heart that you need to do it then you need to do it.
C: I’d say fear held a lot of people back, but it’s also pushed a lot of people forward. I’m sure MLK was scared, I’m sure Rosa Parks was scared. I’m sure everyone else who came before us was scared but you can be scared and still fight the good fight. Don’t let fear stop you.
T: I love that!
