Across the state, young people are bring the Black Lives Matter into small communities.
One of those is in Nashville, Illinois. 17-year-old Janisha Bailey is organizing the protest because she wants to draw attention to racism – something she said her family is all too familiar with.
“Me and my siblings all through high school and even some in middle school have experienced racism in various ways. To start out with, before my dad passed away, he received a letter from the KKK themselves,” Bailey said.
Bailey said she and her family have been called racial slurs and seen racist graffiti near their home in the mostly white community.
Bailey’s older sister, Aaliyah, said many minority families have left the area.
“I have moved away, but the rest of my five siblings have stayed here and they plan on staying here,” Aaliyah said. "There’s very few of us minority families that have really established themselves in this area and I think that’s really sad. Nobody should feel like they can’t stay in their hometown, in the place they were raised.”
The Monday evening protest in Nashville follows others in the region, including Anna, Carbondale, Marion, Carterville, Herrin, Benton, Mt. Vernon and others. A demonstration is planned for Pinckneyville later this week.
