Visually impaired community protests racism, calls for 'real policy change'

RICHMOND,Va. -- Two visually-impaired women organized a small rally in Richmond Sunday to call for policy change and show their community's solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.

“This is a revolution,” Ericka Mosley.

Mosley’s mother said her daughter has been passionate about the cause and wanted to do something to call for change.

“My daughter Ericka also said to me earlier on was that, 'I want to do something,'” Rosanna Mosley, Ericka’s mother, said.

So Moseley and Chinikie Goode organized a rally for the visually impaired community outside the historic St. John's Episcopal Church in Church Hill.

Both women said now is a crucial time for everyone to speak up for justice and equity.

“People in the blind community, or people in communities of disabilities, we know very well what its like to be discriminated against,” Goode said. “It's a moment where we wanted to show solidarity.”

Stories were shared and names of those who died from police violence were read.

And a moment of silence was held for eight seconds in recognition of the more than eight minutes George Floyd was unable to breath before he died.

“We wanted to be away kind of from other protests, but we wanted it to be meaningful at the same time,” Mosley added.

By creating a space that is demanding change in hopes of a better tomorrow.

“Taking statues down is fine, but you need to do more than that,” Goode said. "There needs to be real policy change."

Goode said local leaders need to be held accountable and old laws that need to be examined that she said have failed our society.

“Get out there and vote and that it doesn't stop at the revolving doors of changing leadership," she said. "We need to make sure that we are pushing our leaders to make real change...”