“You’re using your voices, and that matters. It tells this community that you’re paying attention, that you’re not willing to accept injustice as normal,” said Harrisonburg City Mayor Deanna Reed. Mayor Reed was among a number of prominent speakers who shared reflections on the enduring fight against minority injustice at a demonstration held outside of City Hall on March 24. The protest was the culmination of five months of planning by EMU and JMU students to raise awareness about issues affecting minority communities while encouraging civic engagement and dialogue.
“There’s a lot of people who are energized to do this kind of organizing. I know we’ve been doing a lot of ‘ICE Out’ immigration [protests] in general, but I think this is different because it covers broader topics… black and brown communities, racism, all these types of things,” said EMU senior Dibora Mekonnen. Mekonnen has spent the majority of her time this semester working for Mayor Reed as an intern, and played an instrumental role in planning the event. Alongside co-organizer Madeline Barbee, a sophomore at JMU, the two worked to coordinate with City Council members, EMU and JMU’s Black Student Alliances (BSA), JMU NAACP, and other student clubs to bring everyone together.
“As a matter of our secular creed, for many of us as a matter of our faith, we believe in a beloved community,” shared former Congressman Tom Perriello, a last minute addition to the lineup of speakers. “I want to remind us why we call Donald Trump reactionary, he is reacting to progress. He is reacting to the audacity we have of saying, ‘This is exactly what we want America to look like,’ what America promised to be and never yet was.” Perriello served as a Representative of Virginia’s fifth district from 2009 to 2011, and is currently running again in the largely Republican-dominated district. For the majority of his career, Perriello has spent time overseas as a peace negotiator in Sierra Leone, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan. He is well aware of the strategies used by leaders in the lead-up to committing horrific atrocities, and has identified many of the very same tactics being used by the Trump administration.
“We must politicize all areas of our lives, from the front porch to the cookout, from the city block to the city park. This is what it means to stay woke, y’all,” said David Evans, Professor of History & Intercultural Studies and Associate Dean of the Seminary at EMU. “This structural knowledge in building is the foundation of our freedom. So stay woke, because we need to get free.” Late last year Evans was nominated as the Vice President of the Harrisonburg/Rockingham Branch of the NAACP, and was officially appointed to the position in early January 2026. His reflection heavily referenced early efforts of the NAACP, and how the fight for equality today still strongly mirrors that fight over 100 years later. Evans highlighted that in order to overcome the systemic oppression present in every crevasse of daily life, community-oriented grassroots organization is necessary to achieve freedom for all.
“I feel relieved, I feel really good about it. I feel like we addressed what we wanted to address,” said Mekonnen. Her and fellow organizers’ efforts yielded a turnout of over 60 people from all walks of life, with many being students from both EMU and JMU. Later that evening, Mekonnen and Co-President of EMU’s BSA Rin Akinotcho were invited to share their perspectives at the City Council meeting. The council was very receptive to the event itself and their cause; Mekonnen says she sees lots of potential for future demonstrations in collaboration with other student and community organizations.
