LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Several downtown Louisville streets will be closed to vehicle traffic starting Friday in preparation of a rally this weekend and other demonstrations marking one year since the fatal police shooting of Breonna Taylor.
Taylor's family will join Until Freedom, a national social justice organization that planned several demonstrations for Taylor in Louisville last year, for a rally at Jefferson Square Park at 1 p.m. Saturday followed by a food giveaway at 4:30 p.m.
Local social justice groups and activists are also planning to attend Saturday's rally.
"We will definitely be there with the family and with Until Freedom and, like I said, standing in support with the family," said Tyra Walker with the Kentucky Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression. "Because that's who has planned everything; the family, has planned everything. I do know the mother has stated, 'This is not a celebration. This is a memorial.'"
Members of Until Freedom and Taylor's family will hold a news conference Thursday to announce more details about this weekend's events.
"Police officers have been fired, and the charges against Kenneth Walker, Breonna's boyfriend, have been dropped. Full justice still has not been served," the group said in a statement.
Breonna Taylor's family will join Until Freedom, a national social justice organization, for a rally at Jefferson Square Park at 1 p.m. Saturday followed by a food giveaway at 4:30 p.m.
Ahead of the rally and other protest events, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer and other city officials on Wednesday released a list of streets that will be closed to vehicle traffic. Certain blocks adjacent to Jefferson Square Park will be limited to pedestrian traffic only, with no parking, from after morning rush hour on Friday through Sunday.
This is being done in an effort, "to create a walking plaza and ensure the safety of those planning to gather at Jefferson Square Park this weekend," Fischer's office said.
The streets affected are the following:
- Jefferson Street from Fifth to Seventh Street
- Liberty Street from Fifth to Seventh Street
- Cedar Street from Sixth to Seventh Street
- Congress Alley from Sixth to Seventh Street
- Court Place from Fifth to Sixth Street
- Sixth Street from Market Street to Muhammad Ali Boulevard
- Fifth Street from Market to Muhammad Ali Boulevard
- Armory Place from Muhammad Ali Boulevard to Liberty Street
In a statement, Fischer said he believes the weekend events will be, "a solemn remembrance of tragedies, a recognition of changes that those tragedies have brought and will bring, and a reminder of the work still ahead to build a city of equity and a police department working with the community to be the best in the nation."
Jefferson Square Park in downtown Louisville, Ky., on Wednesday, March 10, 2021.
Anyone going to the park for any reason is advised to rideshare in an effort to cut down on traffic and be prepared to walk a few blocks. Police will assist with Americans with Disabilities Act access at the corner of Sixth and Market streets.
Some Transit Authority of River City bus routes may be impacted. TARC said it is implementing a three-square block detour in downtown Louisville. This detour will run from Fourth Street to Seventh Street and from Muhammad Ali Boulevard to Market Street for the full service days of Friday, Saturday and Sunday. This service detour includes TARC3. Riders are advised to check the TARC website for details. If additional assistance is needed to plan bus transportation, call TARC customer service at 502-585-1234.
Fischer's office collaborated with Louisville Metro Police Chief Erika Shields and Vincent James, the city's chief of community building, in creating the weekend preparations.
"As I've shared with the protest leaders we've talked with, the goal is to allow a safe space for people to gather and express themselves in a peaceful, lawful way," Shields said in a statement.
Police shot and killed Taylor, an emergency room tech and former EMT, during an undercover raid on her apartment near Pleasure Ridge Parkas part of a larger narcotics investigation.
No drugs or money were found in Taylor's apartment, and none of the officers who fired their weapons into the residence were charged in connection with her death.
Taylor’s death touched off Louisville’s racial justice protests and gained national prominence as demonstrations spread across the U.S. in response to the death of George Floyd, a Black Minneapolis man who died after a white officer, Derek Chauvin, knelt on his neck as he pleaded, "I can't breathe."
A group of people near Jefferson Square Park in downtown Louisville, Ky., take a knee at 8:46 p.m. Friday, June 5, 2020, the length of time that George Floyd had an officer kneel on his neck. (WDRB Photo/Travis Ragsdale)
Marker honoring Taylor, racial justice protests to be installed at Jefferson Square Park later this spring
Fischer's office on Wednesday announced plans to install a special marker in Jefferson Square Park later this spring, "to recognize the tragedies of 2020, as well as the reforms those events initiated."
According to the news release, the front of the marker will read:
The back of the marker will read:
After this weekend, Jefferson Square Park will be cleaned daily, and permits for events will be required "as outlined under city ordinances," Fischer's office said. The city will work with families the week of March 15 to remove and store memorial items left in the park.
"When people come to see this park, where the local 2020 demonstrations were centered -- prompting public safety reforms and a movement toward greater racial equity -- we want them to come to a beautiful, safe and inviting space," Fischer said in a statement. "And given its historic role as a site to remember first responders who died in the line of duty, we have a real opportunity to create a space for unity, for broader understanding and compassion. That's something we will only achieve by working together, and I am confident our city will rise to this moment."
The city worked with homeless advocates in February to remove unsheltered people from the park. At the time, James said officials were working with those people to figure out how to best transition them into temporary shelter and eventually into permanent shelter.
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