'We will stay out there til change comes': Quad-Cities group marks 4 years rallying for racial equity (2024)

Caryn Unsicker was 13 years old when a neighbor knocked on the front door of her house a block off Henderson Street in Galesburg.

The man wanted her parents to sign a petition to prevent people of color from moving into the neighborhood.

It's a moment the now-77-year-old Silvis resident still thinks about when she spends 30 minutes every Saturday standing on the corner of 16th Street and John Deere Road in Moline with her friend, Glenda Guster, and other members of Progressive Action for the Common Good.

Unsicker, Guster and a handful of other activists have stood on the corner across from SouthPark Mall every Saturday since June 13, 2020, to raise awareness of the need for "racial equality and justice."

Unsicker first contacted Guster and suggested standing on the corner three weeks after George Floyd's murder on May 25, 2020, by a Minneapolis police officer kneeling on his neck for over nine minutes.

Guster and Unsicker hope others will join them on the corner from noon to 12:30 p.m. Saturday. The duo will have extra signs for those who want to spend 30 minutes in support for they have called "the common good of all."

The 64-year-old Guster recalled the day her friend approached her with a question.

"I knew Caryn from Progressive Action for the Common Good," said Guster, who lives in Davenport. "She told me she wanted to raise awareness after what happened to George Floyd. She had this idea to stand on the corner and advocate for racial equality and justice.

"But she was apprehensive because she's a white woman. She didn't know if it was appropriate."

She encouraged Unsicker.

"I told her it takes of all of us to raise awareness about police violence against people of color, to demand equality and justice," Guster said. "I told her if I did it alone out there, most people would probably say 'Look at the Black woman complaining about the same old thing.'

"People like Caryn help us show that we all should care about equality and justice. We should all think about things like access and housing and the way people are treated."

Equality and justice have weighed on Unsicker's mind for a long time.

"I knew about the Civil Rights movement, I paid attention when I was young," Unsicker said. "But it became so real when that man came up to the house and asked if my parents were home. They weren't and I asked him what he wanted and he explained that petition to me.

"I asked him why anyone would ever want to do that."

Unsicker recalled how she felt in 2012 when Trayvon Martin was walking home from a convenience store and was shot and killed after being stopped by the community watch member.

"I had a son and I never had to worry about something like that," she said. "If Trayvon had been white, he would have never been stopped."

Unsicker said the killing of Floyd eight years after Martin was a clear message.

"I don't even know all of the killings between the two," she said. "But I wanted to peacefully be part of changing things."

Guster said the group that gathers every Saturday across from SouthPark Mall numbers between one and 10, but usually draws around five people. A Black Lives Matter sign is always accompanied by an American Flag.

"Sometimes it's just me and Caryn. Honestly, most Saturdays it's the two of us and few other very dedicated people," she said. "But we're there. And sometimes we see a middle finger or have 'All lives matter' screamed at us.

"Obviously, we want justice and equality for all. And, honestly, we get a lot of positive feedback. The good outweighs the bad."

Guster and Unsicker said they will stand on the corner every Saturday for as long as they can.

"We're not asking for handouts or special treatment," Guster said. "I don't want me or anyone else judged by the color of their skin. I want justice and fair treatment for everyone, for the police to treat George Floyd the same way they treat others.

"We will stay out there till change comes."