'People Spontaneously Took To The Streets' At Fairfield Protest

FAIRFIELD, CT — When Emma Powell posted on Instagram three days ago that she was planning to peacefully sit in at Sherman Green to protest police brutality against people of color, she didn’t expect her invitation for others to join would draw roughly 250 people, close roads and inspire a march to Old Town Hall.

“It was the most beautiful thing I think I’ve ever seen,” said Powell, a 19-year-old Fairfield Ludlowe High School graduate. “… People spontaneously took to the streets.”

The protest came after a week of demonstrations following the death of Minnesota man George Floyd. Fired Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, seen in a viral video with his knee on Floyd's neck, has been arrested and charged with third-degree murder. Floyd’s death sparked protests nationwide, some of which have been accompanied by acts of violence.

“We’re witnessing a genocide of our people,” said one Fairfield protester, a Stratford resident who asked only to be identified as “C.” “… ‘Black lives matter’ should not be a controversial statement.”

The event Tuesday in Fairfield was peaceful. The demonstrators, wearing mostly black, filled Sherman Green about 11:30 a.m., lying across Post Road to block traffic and making an impromptu 3-mile march downtown, through the beach area and up to Old Town Hall, where they formed a speaking circle, Powell said.

“We figure any chance we get to come and protest against police brutality is a chance that we should take up,” said Samantha Sainvil, of Bridgeport, who also attended protests in Waterbury and Stratford.

The Fairfield event, set to end at 6 p.m., was still going strong mid-afternoon, with demonstrators returning to Sherman Green and lining Post Road, waving signs with messages such as, “I can’t breathe,” and “Black lives matter,” and chanting, “Silence is compliance,” to the honks of passing cars.

“It’s not enough to be not racist,” said John Whaley, who is the facilitator of Voices for Equity at Fairfield Warde High School and helped spread the word about the protest on social media.

The majority of the protesters wore face masks as a precaution against the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchick joined the demonstrators, first at Sherman Green before the event began, and later when the protesters made their way to Old Town Hall.

“I was proud of our residents for coming together in a peaceful way to speak out against hatred and violence,” she said.

Kupchick also praised Fairfield police for their professionalism keeping protesters and the public safe when the group blocked town roads.

"We are lucky in our community that people can join together to express a common purpose," Fairfield police Capt. Robert Kalamaras said in an email. "From my understanding this protest was organized by a younger generation from Fairfield that is looking for positive change, and members of the Fairfield Police Department will support that."