RUTLAND โ€” A large crowd gathered in Rutlandโ€™s Main Street Park Monday evening to protest the killing of George Floyd and the disproportionate numbers at which people of color are affected by Covid-19. 

A supportive chorus of honks sounded as cars and trucks passed the eventโ€™s nearly 200 participants. โ€œWe literally planned this last night,โ€ said Mary Droege, a co-leader at Castleton Indivisible and the organizer of the vigil. โ€œIt happened within 24-hours notice.โ€ 

Attendees held signs that read โ€œJustice for Floyd,โ€ โ€œEnd Racism,โ€ and, most commonly, โ€œBlack Lives Matter.โ€ย 

โ€œIf we want to stop racism, this is the only way,โ€ attendee Ivana Espinet said. โ€œThereโ€™s no other way to change the world, and itโ€™s been long enough.โ€  

VTDigger's senior editor.