Peaceful protest for George Floyd, against police brutality Sunday in Vail Village

A peaceful demonstration against police brutality and the “unjust murder of George Floyd” by police in Minneapolis on May 25 will be held near the Covered Bridge in Vail Village at 11:15 a.m. today (Sunday, May 31).

“There will be a peaceful demonstration in Vail Village [Sunday] morning to call for an end to police brutality and to stand up against the unjust murder of George Floyd,” organizer Andrew Bare emailed local media Saturday night.

“People will be gathering at the 10th Mountain solider statue near the Covered Bridge at 11:15 a.m. Sunday morning. Please come and see how many members of our Vail community are coming together to take a stand against injustice,” Bare added.

Protests have dominated downtown Denver since Thursday, and Friday and Saturday nights saw widespread protests around the nation.

State Sen. Kerry Donovan on Saturday tweeted “I can’t breathe” and her observations from a day of protests: “The Denver #BlackLivesMatter protest today was peaceful and powerful …”

Donovan is a Vail native who also lives in Denver during the Colorado state legislative session, which had only just recently resumed following a break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The general assembly was in progress Thursday when protests turned violent Thursday night.

State Rep. Dylan Roberts, who represents Eagle and Routt counties and lives in Avon, tweeted this on Saturday:

“The killing of George Floyd was horrendous and it should never happen in this country — but it happens all too often,” Roberts wrote. “The protests in Denver — not the violence and vandalism of a few — and across the country are warranted and we must hear them.”

Edwards resident Mikaela Shiffrin, an Olympic gold medalist ski racer, tweeted this on Friday:

“Maybe it’s not my problem …. I’m dealing with so many things right now. Too many things. I can’t bear any more burden. It’s not directly affecting me, so it won’t matter if I don’t stand up, right now…WRONG. Go ahead, tell me I’m an athlete, and that I should stay in my lane ….”