More than 100 peaceful demonstrators gathered Wednesday at the Huntington County Courthouse to protest the death of George Floyd and the many other unarmed black men and women who have been killed in police custody in recent years.

The City of Huntington, the Huntington Police Department and the Huntington County Sheriff’s Department each affirm any peaceful exercise of every American’s First Amendment rights to peacefully assemble and petition the government for a redress of grievances. City and county officers stood beside protesters throughout Wednesday afternoon to uphold these rights, while Mayor Richard Strick was there to observe and engage with protestors and counter protestors alike.

As a city, we are proud of our citizens who organized a peaceful protest and of the counter protestors who by and large respectfully disagreed.

The Huntington City Council’s Mission Statement commits our community to being one of civility and inclusion. We acknowledge that the people who live and work in our city are our greatest assets. We know it is our diversity that provides the strength that holds our community together.

As we all have seen, protests in cities across the U.S. and the world have drawn thousands upon thousands of demonstrators since George Floyd tragically died in Minneapolis on May 25 while in police custody. Many of these protests have been peaceful, while there have been some highly publicized cases of violence, rioting and looting, including in communities near us such as Fort Wayne.

In Huntington we seek justice, and we strive to listen well and work alongside one another to build a community that is open and welcoming to everyone.