More than 100 protestors marched in the streets of downtown Santee on Saturday afternoon in solidarity with Black and brown women nationwide who have suffered from police violence.
The demonstration, organized by East County BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color), began on Mission Gorge Road around 3:30 p.m. and remained peaceful throughout.
It culminated at the intersection of Mission Gorge and Cuyamaca Street, where group leaders announced a list of demands to the Santee City Council aimed at rooting out racism and making the city more welcoming to people of color.
Among the demands:
- the creation of a city diversity committee led by a person of color;
- the resignation of Councilmember Ronn Hall, who in June was caught making inappropriate remarks on a hot mic; and
- Mayor John W. Minto publicly to denouncing the group Defend East County (DEC).
Before the march, DEC, which is known for racist statements and calls for violence, announced on Facebook that members would be on hand to protect local businesses. As the protesters assembled, a group of counter-protesters presumably aligned with DEC stood in front of stores in the Santee Trolley Square shopping center on Mission Gorge.
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March organizers implored protesters, who were wearing face coverings, to not in any way engage with the counter-protesters, who were mostly white men. A number of them waved Trump flags and wore red “Keep America Great” hats. Most of the counter-protesters also wore face coverings.
“We’re not here for them,” said Alana, one of the organizers of the march who declined to give her last name. “We’re here to show support for the Black and brown women leading this movement.”
There was no direct confrontation between the two groups, and the only law enforcement presence were a few San Diego County Sheriff’s deputies on hand to block intersections along the marcher’s path.
Organizers said they felt that Black and Latina women had been ignored for too long in Santee.
"Bringing diversity to the community is really important. I grew up here, and growing up there wasn’t really a lot of diversity at all," said Monica, another organizer of the march. She also declined to give her last name. "As soon as I was able to leave, I did. But now there are people of color who live here currently and I just want them to feel comfortable, I want them to feel empowered."
As the march moved east down Mission Gorge, however, a few counter-protesters drove west on the four-lane thoroughfare and yelled expletives at the marchers. Other drivers honked in support.
The demonstrators completed their protest by sharing their stories of alleged mistreatment in Santee. In the coming weeks, the group says they’ll be organizing voter registration and food drives in Santee.
