Dallas Activists Gather For Police Brutality & Immigration Rallies
Follow CBSDFW.COM: Facebook | Twitter
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - People are celebrating in Baltimore after it was announced that the police officers involved in the death of Freddie Gray will face criminal charges. Friday afternoon the city's top prosecutor said Gray's death had been ruled a homicide and that his arrest was illegal.
Here at home, a North Texas group plans to gather Friday night in a call for people to stand up against police brutality.
Mother's Against Police Brutality (MAPB) had planned the Friday night rally long before the events happened in Baltimore. But there is no doubt they are hoping the developments in that city will add to the crowd they are hoping will gather outside the Frank Crowley Courts Building.
The in-custody death of Freddie Gray touched off days of violence in Maryland. Local leaders say the decision to charge the officers will reduce, but not completely eliminate the potential for violence here.
The MAPB event is just one civil demonstration planned in Dallas. The rally will eventually merge with Texas Organizing Project (TOP) activists, a Latino group holding their own rally, for a combined march. TOP activists are marching and taking a stance against legislation that would allow police officers to question people about their immigration status during traffic stops. The group will also voice their displeasure with Governor Greg Abbott and his lawsuit against President Barack Obama's executive action on immigration.
Rally organizers say the goal is to send a message to North Texas that area groups will look beyond skin color to fight for their common interest.
"You know what, we're all in this together. And what I'm gonna love about the rally this day is that you're going to see people from all hues in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex coming together," explained Friendship West Baptist Church Pastor Freddie Haynes. "It's really about a cause that's bigger than all of us, and the cause is justice for all and not just justice for a few."
The Mother's Against Police Brutality kicks off at 5 p.m. Texas Organizing Project activists will also begin their rally at 5 p.m. at Dallas City Hall and then those two groups will merge.
(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
