Vigil In Roxbury Honors Breonna Taylor, Victim Of Police Shooting In Kentucky

BOSTON (CBS) - There was another rally in Roxbury Friday night, but George Floyd was not the only one being remembered. This protest was dedicated to Breonna Taylor.

Taylor died last March in Kentucky after being shot several times by police during a drug raid in which she wasn't even the intended target. That shooting is under investigation and the subject of a lawsuit by Taylor's family.

Friday's protesters gathered in Nubian Square and added Taylor's case to the calls for justice. Organizer Keturah Brewster called for action. "In March Breonna Taylor was shot eight times, and executed at the hands of three officers who forced themselves in her home," Brewster said.

The demonstration came after days of heated protest nationwide. It's a climate that leaves demonstrator Nate McLean-Nichols with what he sees as a stark reality. "The criminal justice system and the police system in particular have devalued black bodies to the point where no matter where we are, no matter what we look like, no matter what our positions or titles or statuses are we're in danger," McLean-Nichols said.

The protesters say they're in it for the long haul and are not going away, and they're demanding change.

"We're not marching we're staying right here," said one man. "They can't say we destroyed anything. They can't say we messed up anything. We're staying right here!"

The rally ended with the crowd singing Happy Birthday. Friday would have been Breonna Taylor's 27th birthday.