Anti-racism protests in Utrecht, Nijmegen, Enschede today

Black Lives Matter demonstrations will be held in Utrecht, Nijmegen, and Enschede on Friday afternoon. To prevent it from getting too crowded and so that social distancing can be maintained, the organizers of the demonstrations stressed that they are only for people living in the immediate area and that more protests will be held in other places soon, ANP reports.

Demonstrations against racism and police brutality were held in several other Dutch cities this week. In Amsterdam on Monday and Rotterdam on Wednesday so many people showed up that keeping 1.5 meters apart proved difficult to impossible. Other demonstrations in The Hague, Groningen, and Arnhem managed it quite well. The demonstrations are to show support for people protesting anti-black violence in the United States, following the death in police custody of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week. 

The demonstration in Utrecht will be held on the Jaarbeurs ground at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. Up to 600 demonstrators are expected. The organizers stressed that participants should adhere to social distancing measures. "We think it is most important that nobody is at risk, so that the core message is paramount: stop the police violence against black people and stop institutional racism," the organizers said. 

The Nijmegen demonstration will be held on a meadow in Goffertpark from 5:30 p.m. Around 750 protesters are expected. If the coronavirus measures are not adhered to, the demonstration will be halted, mayor Hubert Bruls warned. The organizers called participants to wear face masks and gloves and maintain social distancing.

In Enschede, the protest is scheduled to start at 5:00 p.m. on the Hendrik Jan van Heekplein. The square's maximum capacity while adhering to coronavirus measures is 500. Mayor Onno van Veldhuizen said he will decide on Friday afternoon whether the protest can happen. If the square is crowded by an hour before the protest, it may be canceled, according to Hart van Nederland.