The Black Lives Matter protest set to take place in Sydney tomorrow remains unauthorised after an appeal was lost in court.
Protest organisers have asserted that the rally will still go ahead, despite the court order, the ABC reports.
The Supreme Court ruled in favour of the NSW Police yesterday, who claimed that the BLM protest would be in breach of the current public health orders in place amid the coronavirus pandemic.
As it currently stands, groups of 20 people are allowed to gather outdoors in public in the state, however, authorities are advising (not enforcing) that residents should avoid gathering in groups of more than 10.
Despite protest organisers arguing that the court didn’t have the jurisdiction to hear the police application, the Court of Appeal ultimately rejected the appeal, ordering the protest an unauthorised event.
Although Police Commissioner Mick Fuller threatened to fine people who attend the event tomorrow, organiser Paddy Gibson is still asserting that the event will go ahead.
“Stand on your own. Stand in a group that is smaller than 20,” he said outside court.
Although he’s encouraging people to attend the unauthorised event, he has been clear that masks and sanitiser will be provided, urging any protesters to adhere to social distancing protocols and generally just do the right thing.
“Come and have your lunch in the Domain in Sydney tomorrow,” he said, asserting that simply showing up (socially distanced, of course) and raising your voice can still help the cause.
“It’s not illegal to have your lunch in the park in the city of Sydney still even under the COVID-19 pandemic … we’ll be continuing to raise our voice for justice.”
In addition to masks and sanitiser, organisers have also urged protesters to register online in an attempt to manage contact tracing should an outbreak occur.
According to the Facebook event page, approximately 1,400 have clicked attending, with an additional 3,400 people interested. However, it’s unclear how many will still attend the event now that it has been ruled unauthorised.
If you *do* choose to attend the protest tomorrow, please make sure you do the right thing, wear a mask, wash and sanitise your hands and remain 1.5 metres apart. The Black Lives Matter movement is so important, so let’s all do what we can to prevent it from being overshadowed by a potential outbreak.
If you don’t want to attend the rally, or don’t want to risk your health, here are some helpful ways to support the cause from home.
