St. Paul, MN – Over 75 people gathered in front of the Governor’s Mansion here, Sept. 1, to protest Governor Mark Dayton’s remarks about the Black Lives Matter march that took place at the Minnesota State Fair Aug. 29. The governor said that march – which drew over 700 people – was “inappropriate.”

Speakers at the rally in front of the governor’s mansion included Monique Cullars-Doty the Aunt of Marcus Golden. She spoke of how the investigation into her nephew’s death and of how her family is demanding answers as to what happened back in January. Deb Howze of the Welfare Rights Committee also spoke. She made statements about the staggering incarceration rates of young African American men and the continued war on poor people in this country, and rallied the crowd to continue to “Stand up, speak out and fight back!”

The march went down Grand Avenue, as people in the restaurants and cafes cheered marchers on, and people also joined in on the march as well. The protest stopped in front of the Wild Onion, where a young woman told the story of police harassing and beating a black man who was leaving the restaurant.

The march ended back at the governor’s mansion where two young women spoke of their brother Marcus Abrahms, a developmentally disabled 17-year-old who was beaten to near death by Saint Paul Police the previous evening after returning from the State Fair.

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