Our Say: Two very different protests had one thing in common, free speech in Annapolis

Annapolis is the home of peaceful protest. The city’s streets regularly fill with men and women carrying signs and banners who are fortified with political purpose.

It is a natural consequence of serving as the capital of Maryland. But Annapolis also is a community where free speech is part of the atmosphere. It is one of the birthplaces of Freedom of the Press, it is home to a historic black community with traditions that survived centuries of hardship. It is a cultural arts center and functions as the symbolic center of the state as well as the seat of democratic government — a mixture of metropolitan and small-town values.

Marches and rallies held Wednesday and Saturday in response to the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis were examples of this peaceful dissent, as were the caravans earlier this spring by advocates of ending restrictions intended to slow the coronavirus pandemic.

In many ways, the two groups could not have been more different.

Marchers carrying banners printed with “Black Lives Matter” and “I can’t breathe” were motivated by a heinous crime committed by the police in Minneapolis: a white officer killing a black man while three other officers watched. Those who walked up Main Street were protesting more than that, of course. They wanted attention paid to historic biases in the justice system and lack of equal educational and economic opportunities for people of color.

Compare that to the ReOpen Maryland events, where signs were raised with messages about loss of jobs and freedom. They were motivated by Gov. Larry Hogan’s efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. They were angry about something more, too. They were taking part in the heated national discussion between right and left championed by President Donald Trump with every divisive tweet and photo op holding up a Bible.

One group was eschewing masks designed to limit the spread of the virus as a political gesture, the other wore them out of concern for public health. One was largely made up of black people, the other white. Neither was particularly good at keeping social distances recommended by public health officials, and police deserve credit for keeping order during both events.

What these two groups have in common, of course, was the hope that by going out into the streets they could make a difference.

The outcome is hard to see from the vantage of today.

Maryland has loosened its restrictions on businesses and individuals as the percentage of positive test results has declined and the number of beds in hospitals has opened. Counties with the highest numbers, Anne Arundel among them, have wisely taken a slower pace.

Those who took part in the ReOpen protests are dispersing now, focusing their anger at local government where restrictions still remain.

There has been no solution to the grievances of the George Floyd protestors.

Black men are killed by the police in such disproportionate numbers that they don’t support any explanation other than racism. Educational opportunities are not the same for whites and people of color. While the police in this community generally have a good relationship with the people they protect, we remain as divided among haves and haves-not along color lines as much as other city or county.

As time goes on, we predict the anger over coronavirus restrictions will fade.

We hope the anger over the death of George Floyd does not.