Jackson prepares for peaceful march Saturday
JACKSON, Tenn. — Community members are planning a march Saturday through the Hub City in hopes of bringing unity.
“This is the beginning. We are laying the foundation.” said Chastelisa McClain, an organizer of the event.
“This march is for a positive response, to see what we can bring to the city and to see what the city can bring to us,” Organizer Orlando Hale said.
The event will start at the St. Paul CME Church, and they will march down Lane Avenue, turn on Hays Street and march into downtown Jackson.
Hale told me it’s not about one particular life but all of them.
“It’s not about bashing police officers and it’s not about bashing citizens,” Hale said. “You have some people who scream ‘all lives matter ‘and some people who say ‘black lives matter,’ and this event, I want to take black lives and all lives and put it together.”
Pastor Mychal Hunt says he’s excited to see all types of people coming together.
“My heart goes out to what happened in Louisiana, Minnesota, but in Jackson I want the world to see and I want our city to see that we’re on the same page,” Hunt said.
Others say this is just the beginning.
“You have to start somewhere, and that’s what we are doing. We are laying the foundation for the community,” Chastelisa McClain said.
It’s an event that is bringing together city leaders.
“Hopefully, it will let them know that the mayor is concerned about the city,” Jackson’s Mayor Jerry Gist said. “We can only grow and be a great city if we all work together.”
“People from all races, people from all different backgrounds, people coming together and showing that we are one community,” City Councilman Johnny Dodd said.”We don’t want to be a divided community.”
For those who want to cause trouble, you might want to think again.
“Stay at home,” Hale said. “Please stay at home, because it is not for that.”
