1,000+ fill downtown St. Charles for Black Lives Matter rally

At least 1,000 sign-waving people packed Lincoln Park in St. Charles Saturday for another peaceful and powerful Black Lives Matter rally and march.

Dara Adedara, a 2019 St. Charles North High School graduate and current University of Southern California student, was one of five speakers and gave the crowd a list of six things to do to be an ally of black rights.

"I believe we all know racism is alive and well all over the world," she started. "The most important thing about allyship is making sure your white voice never outpowers my black one."

She continued with the list, telling the crowd to educate themselves about racism and black history, calling out family and friends for "micro-aggressions that perpetuate racism," and urging them to support black friends and businesses, check up on and respect black friends, never let "this conversation stop."

Many in the crowd stood in the hot sun while others found shade as they listened intently to the speakers. The 1,000 lay or knelt on the hot cement or the freshly cut grass while listening to the audio recordings of more than one killing of a black man at the hands of white police officers. Kane County Sheriff Ron Hain, wearing his uniform, knelt with the crowd.

The crowd then filled the sidewalk as it made it's way east on Route 64 through downtown, crossed the Fox River and briefly blocked traffic as it turned around and walked back to Lincoln Park.