Support for LAist comes from
Local and national news, NPR, things to do, food recommendations and guides to Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire
Stay Connected
Listen

Share This

News

Singing, Praying and Crying at LA's George Floyd Memorial

()

Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.

Christian, Jewish, Buddhist and Muslim faith leaders gathered with Black Lives Matter organizers in downtown Los Angeles on Monday for a memorial for George Floyd and others killed by police.

They stood, in the shadow of City Hall, in robes and prayer shawls, making a wide circle around caskets covered with yellow flowers and framed photographs.

Behind them, people swayed and sang and held up protest signs and bouquets of flowers.

Rev. Gary Bernard Williams, lead pastor at Saint Mark Methodist Church in South L.A., said he supports "what Black Lives Matter is asking for: prosecute killer rogue police officers and defund the LAPD."

Support for LAist comes from

But other black clergy have been hesitant to join the Black Lives Matter movement. And in a speech, Black Lives Matter-LA co-founder Melina Abdullah called them out:

"The church and the movement should be united, not divided!" she said. "We need spaces to meet. We need access to your clergy. We need you to lend us your sound systems from time to time. And we need you to refuse to be the house negroes that this system of white supremacy wants you to be."

READ ADBULLAH'S FULL SPEECH:

Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.

As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.

Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.

We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.

No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.

Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.

Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

Chip in now to fund your local journalism
A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right
(
LAist
)

Trending on LAist