Camden protesters call for end to racist policies, culture

Protesters in Camden called for an end to racist policies and an erasure of figures tied to racism.
Photo credit John McDevitt/KYW Newsradio
CAMDEN, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — A peaceful march against racism took place along the streets of Camden Saturday, to demand erasure of racist policies and culture in the city.

About a hundred people marched against racism through the streets of Camden chanting chanting things like "George Floyd" and "Black power."

Among the demonstrators wanting change was Ojji Babamadi.

"We start with Christopher Columbus, who we believe is not a hero and not someone we should honor because of his history of colonization, of pillaging, of murder," he said. "Over 150 million indigenous lives were lost because of his venture of coming over here and its aftermath."

The head of a Colombus statue taken down earlier in the week made an appearance along the march route.

"We all got to come together, but we can’t have any racist police around here," said Bill Nickers of Camden. "It's been going on for over 400 years. Now it's time to be over. What we are doing is walking for peace all across the world."

The group also wants names like Cooper erased from buildings and streets because of the family's historical ties to slavery, as well as buildings and streets named after Woodrow Wilson because of his actions against people of color.