Black lives matter
2020 Top Stories #3: Black Lives Matter and social justice movements
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See our entire countdown of 2020 top stories, to date, here. This year seemed to really pile on. Besides a contentious election and a worsening COVID-19 pandemic, New Mexicans saw numerous protests and pushes for social justice improvements.
This summer, groups like Black Lives Matter increased their presence and the frequency of their marches.
While the majority of the demonstrations ended peacefully, there were a handful of instances that turned violent.
A lot of attention was spent trying to piece together what exactly happened at what started as a prayer session around a statue of the controversial conquistador Juan de Oñate in Albuquerque. While some were trying to tear the statue down, counter protesters tried to play interference. One of those counter protesters allegedly shot someone during a scuffle.
In the aftermath of the shooting, there were still many questions about what role Albuquerque police were supposed to take as the incident escalated.