Students hold Black Lives Matter protest at Belleville football game

BELLEVILLE, MIch. (WJBK) - Its Friday nights lights in Belleville but there may have been just much action in the stands as there was on the field 

As others stood during the national anthem, they sat with fists raised. The Belleville and Ypsilanti Lincoln football game set the stage for Black Lives Matter supporters and their protest against police brutality and the devaluing of black lives.

They chanted throughout the game and those in the visitor section got an earful whether they liked it or not

Black lives matter to people when it's positive, when it's for their glory but when they're off the field and in the community it's something completely different," said Daquann Harrison.

Harrison helped organize the protest along with high school students Taylor Killich and Hannah Wolf.

"This is happening all over," said Killich. "These things have been happening for a very long time and it's a point where people start to get fed up."

Needless to say, there were mixed reactions to their message and method Friday night.

"I just hope that we have a peaceful protest," said Chris Labombarbe. "They have a right to say what they want to say."

"They have a right to do what they're doing and probably should be doing it," said another parent.

Some students questioned the forum that was used to stage the protest.

"Like I support the movement 100 percent," said one student. "But I think a football game isn't a place for a political debate."

"I think we're here to cheer on our boys and not make it a bigger deal than what it is," said another student.

"It's difficult for me because I have sons in the military and my thing is, all lives matter," said a parent.

"African-Americans have been fighting for years for equal rights and they still haven't got them and that's not fair at all," said one student.

"Before social media we were ignorant to it," said one older man in the stands. "There's instances where people have been killed for doing what the policemen asked them to do."

If there were people that disagreed with the Black Lives Matter protest, they were difficult to find. Many people simply would not talk to FOX 2 on camera about it.

The school knew ahead of time what the group was planning and police had no trouble out of the students as the protest was peaceful.