Summary
- Thousands are expected at protests in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Hobart on Saturday to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and call for an end to Aboriginal deaths in custody.
- NSW's Supreme Court has banned the Sydney protest because it breaches coronavirus restrictions, but it is unlikely to stop marchers, including the mother of David Dungay Jr who died in Long Bay prison.
- Organisers are encouraging protesters to wear face masks, adhere to social distancing and use hand sanitiser.
- Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Chief Health Officer Brendan Murphy have urged protesters to find another way to express their views without putting their health and that of others at risk during the coronavirus pandemic.
Latest updates
'Change starts in your own backyard'
By Zach Hope
The protest against racism has attracted the full spectrum of Melbourne’s diverse population.
Teachers Tim and Andrea are with their kids Poppy, Daisy and Harry to teach them that change "starts in your own backyard".
"Australia's history is not that good and we want to do something about the future," Amber said.
Teachers Tim and Andrea with their children.Credit:Zach Hope
Tim wants his kids to understand they live a privileged life, while many Australians do not.
Families remember loved ones
A number of family members of those who have died in Australian police custody are taking to the stage in succession to speak to the crowd, Rachael Dexter reports.
Veronica Nelson's brother Dwayne and Tanya Day's son are among the speakers asking for justice.
Veronica Nelson died alone in a maximum security cell on January 2 this year after being refused bail for alleged shoplift.
Tanya Day's death led to a commitment from the Victorian government to abolish the antiquated offence of public drunkenness, an offence recommended to be abolished by the 1991 royal commission.
Ms Day died after hitting her head in a Castlemaine police cell in 2017 and a coroner has referred two police officers for criminal investigation.
You can read more about Ms Day here, and Ms Nelson here.
Song to farewell those who died in custody
After a minute's silence, solemn song has broken out at the Melbourne protest.
Our reporter Rachael Dexter says the song farewells the spirits of those who have died in custody.
Minute's silence in Melbourne
A minute's silence marks the start of the Melbourne protest to remember deaths in custody.
More than 400 Aboriginal people have died in police custody since the landmark 1991 royal commission into Indigenous deaths in custody.
The 1991 inquiry investigated the deaths of 99 First Nations people in custody.
Wait for court decision on Sydney protest
By Helen Pitt
Sydney reporter Helen Pitt spoke to 87-year-old Pamela Bryce while walking in Coogee today.
Mrs Bryce was waiting to hear about the Supreme Court decision on the appeal to legally allow the city's Black Lives Matter protest.
Pamela Bryce, 87, mounting her own personal protest at Coogee.Credit:Helen Pitt
When she heard it was called off because of court orders, her daughters took her to the Coogee headland in Sydney's east to mount her own personal protest.
Mrs Bryce who has walked in Sydney protests since the Vietnam era said: “I had to do something, the government is not doing much for Aboriginal people. They sprung it on us that we couldn’t march so I'll sit here in my own protest."
Crowd shouts 'shame' at Melbourne rally
By Rachael Dexter
Rally organisers have taken to the stage to begin the formal part of today's Black Lives Matter protest in Melbourne.
Citing the names of Aboriginal people who have died in custody, including Tanya Day and Kumanjayi Walker, the first speaker Sue-Anne Hunter drew shouts of "shame" from the crowd.
"As we speak about this, people are dying," she said.
Ms Hunter went on to say that no police officer in Australia has been convicted over the death of an Aboriginal person in custody.
"Not one person," she said.
Another speaker asked the crowd to remain peaceful today.
Sydney protesters will push ahead despite court ruling
Sydney Aboriginal leaders say nothing will stop them marching in a Black Lives Matter protest despite it being deemed unlawful by the courts after a last minute move by police to block the rally over fears of coronavirus transmission.
#BLM was written in the sky in Sydney on the day of the Black Lives Matter rallies held across Australia Credit:Jamie Berry
Thousands of people were expected to attend the rally at Sydney’s Town Hall this afternoon, Sydney Morning Herald journalists Tom Rabe, Laura Chung and Michaela Whitbourn report.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Thursday labelled the rally “illegal” after several senior ministers publicly voiced their concerns before police went to court seeking an injunction.
Despite the political and legal argument over the protest, CEO of the Metro Local Aboriginal Land Council Nathan Moran said he and scores of other Indigenous people would attend the rally “rain, hail or shine”.
An appeal from the protesters is about to get underway in Sydney to fight last night's court ruling.
Social distancing concerns at protests
Our reporters Zach Hope and Rachael Dexter are at Melbourne's rally where volunteers are handing out free masks and hand sanitiser.
But social distancing doesn't seem to be a priority for everyone today, with the crowd becoming quite dense around the main speakers.
At least 50 police, including officers on horses, are guarding Parliament House alone. More are in a loose ring, around the perimeter of the crowd.
About a thousand have already gathered in Melbourne
Age reporters Zach Hope and Rachael Dexter are on the ground at the Melbourne protest outside Parliament House.
They say about a thousand people of all ages have already arrived ahead of a start time of 2pm wearing face masks and carrying placards.
Sanitiser station at the Melbourne protest.Credit:Joe Armao
Organisers are handing out free surgical masks, gloves and hand sanitiser at entry sites.
Our photographer Joe Armao is also on scene.
Scenes at the Melbourne rally.Credit:Joe Armao
Crowd starts to build in Melbourne
Channel Nine reporter Dougal Beatty is outside Parliament House in Melbourne where the crowd is already building at the intersection of Spring and Bourke streets.
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2020-06-06 04:45:00Z
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