Thousands March in New York and Puerto Rico for Oscar López Rivera
On May 30, 2015, nearly 5,000 marched in New York to call on President Obama to offer clemency to Oscar López Rivera. Puerto Rico also celebrated their 2nd Caminata Nacional for the Puerto Rican political prisoner who completed 34-years behind bars yesterday.
The New York march, which went from Central Harlem to El Barrio for a subsequent rally, included prominent elected officials, such as New York City council members Rosie Méndez and Melissa Mark-Viverito; and Congressional Representatives Nydia Velázquez and José Serrano. The march, organized by the May 30th Coalition to Free Oscar López Rivera, also included important community members from across the Diaspora such as Professor Ana López, LGBTQ activist Pedro Julio Serrano, youth from El Puente’s many programs, and contingents from Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Massachusetts.
La Respuesta magazine’s New York crew proudly marched side-by-side with our people and were met with many non-Boricuas practicing solidarity, including our sisters from the Dominican Diaspora magazine, La Galería, and Mexican residents of Nueva York. Thank you everyone for using the hashtag we created: #March4OscarNYC! Here are some photos and videos highlighting the best of the day:
To see more photos, check out the album of our friend Virtual Boricua, here.