Huge protest in downtown L.A. targets DA Jackie Lacey; others demonstrate around Southland - Los Angeles Times

He said he has lived in Los Angeles 20 years and wanted to publicly protest to make clear that the killing of black men and women is wrong.

“It’s a blessing that this is going on in Newport Beach,” Oliver, who is black, said.

Oliver said pastors in Santa Ana began meeting regularly with Orange County law enforcement officials about five years ago in hopes of ending “policing from the point of view that they’re under attack.” He’s seen progress but more needs to be done, he said, here and throughout the country.

“Two men have said, ‘I can’t breathe.’ One said it eight times, one said it 11 times,” Oliver said, referring to the deaths of Floyd and Eric Garner, who died while being restrained by a New York City policeman.

Driving in his hometown of Mission Viejo and elsewhere in the county, Scallon said, he has been pulled over by officers intent on questioning his girlfriend, who is Creole

“They ask me for my license,” he said, “and they ask her where she lives, where she’s going, what she’s doing in the car."In his experience, Scallon said, the default view for police is to assume people of color are doing something wrong, no matter the circumstances of the encounter