Written by: Julie Stank
Some holiday shoppers in Lancaster found themselves in the middle of a "die-in" protest on Saturday.
The non-violent, peaceful protest took place at Park City Center. It's organized under the #BlackLivesmMatter717. Protesters could be seen lying on the ground for four and a half minutes which symbolized the four and a half hours the body of Michael Brown--an unarmed black teen-- laid in the street after being shot by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri.
Protesters also held a training session that addressed how the city fits within the national conversation about racism.
"Why do we say black lives matter and not all lives matter? Well embedded in our lives is black lives," Community Organizer Kevin Ressler said, "So if people don't feel comfortable expressing individual parts of all live, then we have to ask why are we uncomfortable, and that helps us to be able to get to the root issues instead of the acute symptoms and hopefully we can continue that conversation through continued actions and trainings and opening public space."
Those involved with the protest say they want to be able to build solidarity as co-creators of justice and equality.