This week we take you inside the capitol of the entertainment industry - Los Angeles - and speak to actress Shani Drake. In this video journal, she discusses her experiences at the Black Lives Matter protests over the police murder of George Floyd - a single incident in police violence that we are sure needs no introduction since it sparked international outrage.
Shani has starred in TV series and many independent films including Avery Road which screened at our Short Film Open Mic in 2018. Read our interview with Shani below to get her eye witness perspective of what it’s like to be marching in the streets of LA.
Tell us a bit about yourself and your background as an LA based actress:
I’ve been acting out here in LA for a little over five years now. I’ve been able to be a part of some great projects, which I’m thankful for, and I’ve met a lot of talented people along the way. I’ve grown a lot as a person and an artist as well. Acting is my main focus but I have many other creative passions... music, writing, creating content. That’s one of the reasons I decided to document the protests. When I’m taking photos and creating videos I’m in my element.
What is the vibe of the protests that you’ve attended?
I’ve attended five over the past week and a half and the vibe has changed daily. The first BLM protest I went to was on May 27th, two days after George Floy’s passing, before the movement really gained momentum. There were still a lot of people out supporting but the spirit of it felt like a smaller tight-nit thing. Derek Chauvin, the officer who knelt on George Floyd’s neck hadn’t been arrested yet at that point so I think everyone out protesting that day was feeling outraged over that and just a strong sense of urgency and frustration.
My second day was May 30th. Protests had spread to multiple parts of the city at that point. I went out to the Beverly area that day and saw things I’d never seen before! Cars on fire and no one putting them out, people standing on top of abandoned city busses, someone spray painting the Beverly Hills sign... and crowds much bigger than just a few days prior. All of that in combination with the police using flash bangs and tear gas made it feel a bit like a war zone. Just a few days after that the vibe was completely different again. Overwhelmingly peaceful and even larger in size. The number of people I’ve seen showing up to protest has continued to blow my mind.
Have there been any stressful moments or close calls?
Yes! My second day protesting we marched from the Grove to Beverly Hills. There was a huge police presence that day. It was definitely intimidating. The crowd marching was very big and the leaders kept telling us to stick together because there was this ever looming threat of the police intervening at any moment. We were hearing rumors on Twitter that they were bringing jail busses and planning to arrest a lot of people. We were hearing lots of things. They were following us in helicopters and when we arrived in Beverly Hills we were met with a police barricade. They started setting things off into the crowd to try and disperse us. At that point I no longer felt safe.
Protesting definitely isn’t for the faint of heart. It can be stressful at times, there were some moments where I was truly scared, but there’s power in numbers. Being with so many people that day made me feel safe in some ways. If I could go back in time I’d still choose to go out and make my voice heard that day. There’s something so empowering about that.
What are your thoughts on the record numbers we’re seeing of police attacking journalists and those documenting the protests?
I’ve seen a lot of upsetting images and videos this past week. The police are literally responding to our police brutality protests with more police brutality. I hate violence and the things I’ve seen these past few days have made me so sad. There have been so many cases of people ending up in the hospital after getting hit with rubber bullets. Multiple people lost an eye. That’s just so upsetting to think about. A lot of these people who have been injured were participating in peaceful protests where the police instigated things. This is what I’ve witnessed myself being out there, the police instigating things. No one should have to lose their eye as a result of protesting!
Have you already seen positive change due to these protests?
Yes, there’s been positive change already! Minneapolis is planning to disband their police department which is so amazing and almost unreal to think about! Who would’ve imagined that happening just two weeks ago. Defunding the police is becoming a more widely understood and accepted idea and I think a lot of people want that now, especially since it could mean more money going towards education, healthcare, homelessness, mental health, communities, etc. Our mayor, Eric Garcetti, is listening to us a little bit... he’s agreed to cut $150 million from the police budget which is a start. We’re asking him to go a lot farther than that because right now the police budget is a whopping $3.14 billion! $150 million is only a 5% cut from that.
We have more demands and still need to be heard in many ways. There are still so many people who haven’t gotten justice, like Breonna Taylor (one of so many others). The cops who killed her haven’t been charged with anything. Those are some of the reasons why so many people are still out in the streets. I’m headed back out tomorrow!
Follow Shani on Instagram @ShaniDrakeLove
As always, we a Kino Short Film are committed to providing a safe space to artists to share their work. We promise to continue to use our platform to amplify black voices and we stand with the protestors as we work towards a widespread systemic change that holds police accountable for their actions.
Below is a work-in-progress collection of ways you can help end systemic racism and end police violence.
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