Activists March in Los Altos to Commemorate Death of George Floyd

LOS ALTOS (KPIX) -- Several protests around the Bay Area marked the one-year anniversary of the death of George Floyd, but one of the larger events took place in the unlikeliest of cities: Los Altos.

"It's not just in the south. Racism is happening and systemic change is needed. It's here as well. We're from Los Altos, and we're hosting it here," said Kenan Moos, co-founder of Justice Vanguard, a social justice activism and education organization.

Moos and co-founder Kiyoshi Taylor organized the 1.5 mile march from Los Altos High School to the corner of North San Antonio Road and El Camino Real, one of the most visible intersections in the city.

The march culminated in a boisterous rally with more than 60 people, that at times spilled into the street and blocked one lane of El Camino for several minutes.

"Want to remind us all that this is just a starting point. And that we're thankful for what happened with the George Floyd case, but this is not where it ends. That's simply the standard, and we need to go up from here," said protestor Molara Babogunje.

Over the past year, Justice Vanguard convinced school officials to remove school resource officers from the campus of Los Altos High School. The organization also helped to successfully lobby the Los Altos City Council to form a new Citizen's Police Task Force.

"Right now, we are in a deep hole. So don't expect those who threw you in it to help you out. It's upon us to educate ourselves because as of right now the schools won't do it," said Taylor.

The duo's next goal? Pushing the district to add ethnic studies to its curriculum.

"We can't just rely on San Francisco or Oakland to always be the cutting edge, we have to organize where we live," said high school teacher Seth Donnelly.

Moos had a message for young Bay Area activists.

"It's not you alone. I mean, look at the crowd that we have here behind me. You keep pushing, you find that network of people you keep around, and you stay strong. We got this together," said Moos.