Vick Bouzi pointing his hand toward City Hall at the Nov. 7 rally. All photos by Ceferino Martirez.
Long Beach community organizations continued to rally in reaction to the election, this time meeting at City Hall on Nov. 7. The rally was both an act of celebration and frustration at the current political divide within the United States.
Multiple Long Beach organizations attended, forming a vast coalition of leftist progressives and liberals in solidarity with the people of Long Beach. Despite a strong forecast of rain, about 80 people still turned out to the rally.
Although some attending the rally were there to celebrate Joe Biden’s victory, many were tired of the current two party system and expressed concern for the safety of many groups.
While many attendees were glad for the return to normalcy, others disagreed saying that voters “merely picked for a lesser oppressor.”
Vick Bouzi and Audrena Redmond both shared this sentiment. They spoke of their frustration with the Democrats’ lack of pushback against the Trump administration.
An organizer for the Democratic Socialists of America’s Long Beach chapter, Bouzi discussed his experiences with police violently crushing protesters near the LBCC Liberal Arts Campus, where he saw his own community crying at the sight of police violence as they fired flashbangs into the crowd.
“We stand in support for each other,” Bouzi said. ”All of us fighting for one cause fighting the capitalist state.”
Redmond, of Black Lives Matter Long Beach, said that the fight for Black lives is not over, recalling a conversation in 2016 when she was baffled when she heard that “we live in a post-racial America.”
Redmond said the fight against racism in America is not over, and people need to keep organizing if they want to defund the police and create a safer future for their children.
Byron Adams, from the Queers Obliterating White Supremacy, spoke about the importance of creating community and valuing inclusion. Adams said it is very important to keep groups like the trans and unhoused communities safe, as they are among the most marginalized.
“We are here to stand with each other and to protect one another,” Adams said. “We are continuing to liberate all people, Black people, trans people.”
The community remained galvanized as the rain and wind gave way to a bright sunny afternoon above City Hall, with many chanting as they left.
“[The] fight is not yet over, we still have a long way to go before anything in this country changes,” one protestor said.
