Protests planned at Stotzky Park and downtown Riverhead Sunday, officials say

Two separate events have been organized in Riverhead for Sunday afternoon as part of the growing nationwide response to the killing of an unarmed black man, George Floyd, in Minneapolis while in police custody.

Riverhead officials said a 1 p.m. event organized by Eric Williams will be held at Stotzky Park. Officials said it is a “sanctioned” event and “the leaders of this event have assured a peaceful protest.”

A second protest is planned for 3 p.m. that wall start along the Peconic Riverfront. Officials said that protest is “an unsanctioned event organized by the Black Lives Matter movement.”

“Please be advised that while the majority of the protests have been peaceful, there is a possibility of community disruption. We have contingency plans in place. The safety of our residents, businesses and visitors are our paramount concern.

“We are advising businesses, visitors and residents to be cognizant of these two events.”

An organizer of the second protest, who gave her first name as Anubia, said they will meet at the Peconic Riverfront and begin marching from there. The Riverhead resident said she was in contact with the organizer of the protest at Stotzky Park and was told some of those people may join them at 3 p.m.

“It’s not been easy for anybody who is black who is seeing what is going on,” she said of the recent events unfolding across the country.