A supporter of Knowland Park and its wildlife
Thanks to ALL who worked so hard to make it happen – donating materials, making signs, contributing speeches or music, leading cheers, waving signs, running our “shuttle,” sharing the information with others and turning out for a fun afternoon. It was truly inspiring to see people just keep coming and coming and coming as the crowd grew.
The crowd at one corner of the intersection
It was tough to do a crowd count since everyone kept moving and we had people with signs on all four corners of the intersection, but estimates ranged from 150-200 people plus a couple of dogs. The group was so enthusiastic and passersby in cars were equally so, honking and waving in support.
Security personnel at work
The zoo turned out a full security detail for us, apparently fearing anarchist Park supporters might appear, but everything was peaceful – just a diverse group of citizens exercising our right to protest plans to carry out a grievous wrong.
Speakers addressing the crowd
A great set of speakers emphasized the rich environmental value of saving the Park, the ugly irony of claiming that bulldozing it would advance the “conservation” cause, the falseness of claiming to be doing it solely “for the children,” and the lack of transparency of the whole project. We finished off “making some noise” and channeling Woody Guthrie in song to inspire us to keep up the fight. We even got some TV coverage on Channel 2 that evening and the next morning. More events in the works as we speak. Meanwhile enjoy these photos contributed by several attendees!
Part of the diverse and passionate crowd
Zoo staffers watching the demonstrators
Musicians led the crowd in song
Children also participated in the rally
Follow
Comments are closed.