fourth current event for quarter three

WORCESTER — Four protesters who blocked traffic in Kelley Square as part of a "Black Lives Matter" protest earlier this year have been summoned to court on charges related to the incident.
The protestors, identified by police as Robert Blackwell Gibbs, 39, of Worcester; Julius R. Jones, 34, of Worcester; Kevin M. Ksen, 48, of Worcester; and Sonya Conner, have each been charged with being a disorderly person and disturbing the peace.
"The summonses were a result of an investigation that's been going on since the incident occurred," Worcester Police Sgt. Kerry F. Hazelhurst said. "Based on the investigation and results, those four were charged."
Approximately 30 to 40 protesters crowded Kelley Square about noon Jan. 19, standing together and blocking traffic while singing a song called "I Can't Breathe," as part of national protests in response to Ferguson, Missouri, and New York City deaths at the hands of police. The protest — which lasted about 4½ minutes — came a few days after several people blocked traffic on Interstate 93 in Medford and Milton for a similar cause on Jan. 15.
Mr. Jones told a reporter on Jan. 19 that he and about two dozen people gathered for 4½ minutes to block the area near an Interstate 290 ramp. The number of minutes blocking the road signified each hour Michael Brown's body lay in the street after a police officer shot him dead in Ferguson, Missouri, in August.
The grand jury's decision last fall not to indict Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson in the death of Mr. Brown in Missouri sparked national outrage. The "I Can't Breathe" movement grew a few weeks later, as news circulated of Eric Garner's death in Staten Island after an officer pinned him down in a chokehold. Mr. Garner was recorded on video telling officers 11 times before he died that he couldn't breathe.
Actor Samuel L. Jackson took to social media around that time to share a chant-like song for protesters to sing titled "I Can't Breathe." The lyrics include the line, "Calling out the violence of the racist police, we ain't gonna stop 'til people are free," which Kelley Square protesters sang during the Jan. 19 protest.
In a video of the Kelley Square demonstration posted on YouTube by the Future Focus Media Coop, some motorists honked their horns and seemed agitated as protesters held hands to form a human chain that spanned Route 122A outside the Hotel Vernon. At one point, the protesters parted to allow an ambulance, with its emergency lights on, to pass through the intersection. Then they resumed their positions blocking traffic.
Mr. Blackwell Gibbs was depicted in the video jumping up on a honking truck's cab when the driver pulled close to protesters and blared his horn. Mr. Blackwell Gibbs was seen screaming at the man. Then he jumped off the vehicle and walked away.
When reached for comment about the summonses today, Mr. Blackwell Gibbs wrote in a Facebook message to a reporter, “It is actually … an attempt by the city government and the police to repress the protest movement in this city, therefore silencing the people."
         
                                   I  do agree that you should stand up for what you believe in, but in a legal way jumping up on peoples cars and screaming at them is just the wrong way to go about it. That would probably attract more negative attention than positive which when you're trying to protest that is not what you want. You want as many people on your side as possible. The act also took place in one of the most retarded places i mean really Kelly Square is already complicated enough, it still works out though there doesn't need to be anything in the way of ongoing traffic. Maybe on the sidewalk it be safer  for everyone and they had a huge sign i don't think people will miss it. So if you are thinking about raising awareness of a problem be safe and try not to break the law.