Protest Organization

Protests and demonstrations are happening across the country and state, and there will be one in Starkville tomorrow.

Protests and demonstrations are happening across the country and across the state...éé there will be one in starkville tomorrow.

Our stephanie poole speaks with city leaders about the planning process...éé she joins us live in the studio with more.éé that's right joey, there are several things city leaders must check leading up to saturday's protest.

éé starkville police chief mark ballard says officers will go through mandatory consitutional training.éé meaning officers will cover how to respond to large crowds, protection of the public, and knowing the rights of citizens.

éé the chief says these measures will be taken very seriously as 35 to 40 officers will be present.éé also, before the protest can take place, it has to be approved with a permit.

éé starkville mayor lynn spruill explains.éé " well normally we have a permitting process and right now the times are a little different than usual because someone who gets a special event permitted whether it's a parade or a march or a food event downtown or something like that, normally they'll have to get insurance and let us know what the root is and how many people they expect to give us an idea of what we'll need as city.

We'll closing off downtown will be enough to get people through.

We are just allowing them the opportunity to make their way through intersections and be safe in doing."

As for city workers, mayor spruill says she is not requiring the sanitation department to pick-up after the protest.

éé she plans to clean sidewalks herself with the help of volunteers.éé