'It Needs To Stop': Agoura Hills Rallies For Change

AGOURA HILLS, CA — Over 50 Conejo Valley residents gathered in Agoura Hills Sunday and Monday to speak out for racial justice.

Protesters stood on alternating sides of the intersection of Kanan Road and Thousand Oaks Boulevard beginning at 4 p.m. on both days. They chanted the now-familiar choruses of “Black Lives Matter!” “No justice, no peace!” and the names of African-Americans who died while in police custody.

On both days, the crowd did not march anywhere, although different cohorts crossed to different sides of the intersection. But mostly, they waved signs to a barrage of honking cars.

“We here on the street are using our right to peacefully assemble to express our horrors at what happened in the last couple of weeks,” Agoura Hills resident Melissa Humphreys announced over a microphone. “We are all part of the problem if we don’t use our voices, and we are all using our voices now!”

Humphreys, a podcaster and meditation coach, was not the organizer of the protest, and said that she did not know who the organizer was. Like other attendees, Humphreys said she heard about the protest through social media.

“I never in a million years thought I’d be on the corner, with a mic, but it’s so necessary right now – it just so is,” said Humphreys.

On her mic, Humphreys read the names of African-Americans who died in police custody, and talked about how students in Agoura Hills have felt scared to speak out when they see racism.

“I just got a call last night about kids at the school coming forward and speaking up against racial injustice and situations that they’ve been in where they have been afraid to speak up,” said Humphreys. “They don’t want to be troublemakers, they don’t want to make it worse themselves or other kids.”

Other protesters echoed this view.

“I think some parts of this community are a little backwards and that needs to change,” said Westlake Village resident Justin Shoemaker. “I want my kids to live in a better tomorrow without any of that fear, doubt, or worry. I went to school there and it’s not okay what I saw – on a daily basis with people saying the n-word, making racist remarks, it’s just not ok. It needs to stop.”

Shea Pitts, an African-American Agoura Hills resident, said that he attended the protest to increase visibility in area without a large African-American population.

“I’ve been in the community and there are not a lot of African-American residents,” he said.

The 2010 U.S. Census indicates that only 1.3% of Agoura Hills residents were African-American at the time.

“I wanna represent and show pride for where I’m living and for African-Americans as well … you would never expect people to be around Agoura Hills, same with Simi Valley, Westlake Village. People are coming together, which you’d never expect.”

Traffic continued unimpeded along streets, and there was no noticeable police presence. The Lost Hills-Malibu Sheriff’s Station has not returned Patch’s calls for comment.

The city of Agoura Hills has not released any statement on the protests, though Mayor Ilece Buckley Weber mentioned them in her weekly YouTube address, where she praised peaceful protests and denounced violence and looting.

“The past ten days have been incredibly difficult for all of us,” Buckley Weber said Thursday. “I have been attending peaceful protests for over 40 years. They are a very effective tool to bring about change in our country. I attended a peaceful protest the other night with my daughter, and I was very happy and encouraged to see that I was the oldest person there by probably 20-25 years. I have great faith in the next generation. They’re strong, they’re motivated, and they’re gonna work hard to make America a better place for everyone.”