Black Friday Black Lives Matter Protest Could Attract 3,000 To Westlake

SEATTLE, WA - A Facebook page setup by the Black Freedom Front of Seattle indicates that as many as 2,700 people might attend a Black Lives Matter protest in downtown Seattle's Westlake Park on Black Friday.

The event, "BlackLivesFriday 3.0 The Revolution Begins," implores would-be Black Friday shoppers to ditch the stores and join the group in remembering people killed by police in recent years. The page indicates that some 7,000 are interested in attending the protest, and another 8,000 have been invited.

"WE NEED TO COME TOGETHER AND BE UNITED AS ONE AGAINST injustice, racism, oppression, police brutality and get JUSTICE FOR Freddie Gray, Mike Brown, Tamir Rice, Tony Robison, Sandra Bland and hundreds of other unarmed people of color KILLED BY POLICE," the Facebook event page states.

Black Lives Matter protests have occurred in downtown Seattle on Black Friday since 2014. On Nov. 25 that year, three days before Black Friday, a grand jury declined to indict Ferguson, Mo., officer Darren Wilson in the police-action shooting death of Michael Brown.

On Black Friday in 2015, Seattle Police arrested four people connected to that day's Black Lives Matter protests. Hundreds of protesters marched through the downtown shopping district, with some protesters breaking off to enter local stores.

Meanwhile, the Downtown Seattle Association has downsized this year's traditional Black Friday Christmas tree lighting. The group has said it's not because of protests, but because it wants to focus resources on events at Occidental Square and Westlake Park.

The Black Lives Matter rally begins at 1 p.m. at Westlake Park.

Image via Flickr user Lorie Shaull