Black Lives Matter protest planned in Doncaster Town Centre this weekend

The protest will be held in Sir Nigel Gresley Square on Sunday, June 7 at 1pm.

Organiser Olivia Jones decided to host the protest after reflecting on the social media posts that have arisen this week such as #blackouttuesday which followed the death of American George Floyd while in police custody.

The 25-year-old said: “I had been sharing posts and information but after a while, it started to feel like I wasn’t doing enough.

“I visited my parents and we were talking about a protest happening in Manchester but we weren't sure if we could get there and back so I messaged the organisers to see how I could go about setting one up in Doncaster.”

Since announcing that the protest will be held Olivia has had lots of support through social media and says that people welcome the chance to protest.

“I’ve found that a lot of people are feeling the same way as me and that people want this to happen in Doncaster,” she continued.

“There can be quite a negative attitude towards Doncaster but we have such a rich diversity I think this could be a moment to bring everyone together.

“Everyone knows someone in the black community who is affected by racism and our lives are all intertwined.

“Hopefully this protest will show that they are safe and that we are all in this together.”

Olivia is stressing the importance of protesters adhering to social distancing guidelines and wearing face masks and gloves to the protest.

She said: “There is a pandemic going on but this is important and if people stay two metres apart and wear face masks I don’t see why it would be any more dangerous than a trip to Tesco.

“People seem to be fine with going to the beach but as soon as it’s a protest it's a problem.”

The protest will be manned by volunteers to make sure that people stick to social distancing.

There will be a nine-minute silence during the protest as well as speakers and poetry readings.

“I’ve already been contacted by the museum who want to display some of the posters and banners from the protest as they said it’s going to be a moment in history,” Olivia said.

“I’m really proud to be doing something like this and I hope it will make an impact.”

Olivia is keen to ensure that this protest is inclusive to all and is asking for anyone who may want to get involved to contact her directly via their Instagram here.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper.

Thank you

Nancy Fielder, editor