The racial healing of a nation was the emphasis of a rally conducted in Chillicothe Saturday afternoon. The Black Lives Matter Protest Rally and March started with people gathering in Yoctangee Park at midday, then marching to the Ross County Courthouse. That is where the rally was conducted with residents of the community being joined by local leaders and law enforcement.
Teen activists Ava Guerra and Devan MacLachlan organized the rally, emphasizing that they wanted the event to remain peaceful, while attempting to get the attention of our community concerning a wide-spread problem seen in other communities around the nation.
During the rally, Chillicothe Mayor Luke Feeney told the crowd that the city will review use of force policies in the Chillicothe Police Department and will bring the report back to the community within 90 days. He said if changes are needed, they would be made.
The city's Interim police chief, Larry Banfield, also stated that "black lives matter," and promised the police department will make strides to see that the police department is "diverse and colorblind."
Zion Baptist Church Pastor Troy Gray was asked to speak to those gathered at the rally as well as lead in prayer. He also closed the event with delivering the iconic "I Have A Dream Speech", that Martin Luther King Junior gave in front of the Lincoln Memorial, during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963. The address called for civil and economic rights and an end to racism in the United States.
On his Facebook post Saturday, Pastor Gray wrote: "I felt the spirit say call all pastors, All law enforcement and All African- American males to come stand together. Joined together at the steps of the Courthouse. Join together seeking the face of GOD to heal our city Heal our state and heal our Nation and World. Yes, prayer changes things that and action. Several thousand came together today unified peaceful and seeking GOD. The shift has happened."
Black Lives Matter organizers were also scheduled to conduct a protest rally Saturday in downtown Hillsboro, during late afternoon-early evening hours.