Racine mayor encourages people take a knee, light a candle in honor of George Floyd

RACINE, Wis. (CBS 58) -- The City of Racine will host a peaceful solidarity event to honor George Floyd Tuesday evening, June 2, that is also socially distant. 

Racine is one of the hardest hit areas but COVID-19 with more than 1,200 positive cases. Monday, June 1, dozens took to the streets of Racine to protest the death of Floyd. Another rally is scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday. 

Racine Mayor Cory Mason said he's concerned about the crowds and the spread of the virus. He's encouraging people to instead take a knee or light a candle outside of their homes for nine minutes in Floyd's honor, starting at 6 p.m. 

Churches will also be ringing their bells at 6. 

Mass gatherings are banned in Racine through July. 

Mayor Mason says technically the large rallies are in violation of the order. 

"We're still in the middle of a pandemic and what we said last week about mass gatherings not being safe is still true. So even though people want to assemble and raise their voices together in their understandable outrage want to be heard, we are still in the midst of a pandemic," Mayor Mason said. 

The city is encouraging participants to share their peaceful demonstration images and videos on social media.