PHILLY: Please come out Tomorrow, Tuesday 6/2/15 at 9am at the Criminal Justice Center (1301 Filbert Street) to SHOW SUPPORT FOR ACTIVISTS arrested on May 28 while participating in the #SayHerName vigil in remembrance of Black women, children and trans folks murdered by racist police.
Five activists were arrested at the vigil near Broad and Cecil B. Moore, and three others arrested while engaged in jail solidarity outside the 22nd Police District at 17th & Montgomery.
Cindy Miller, Andrea Jacome and Chanaiah Maxwell have appearances at 9am on Tuesday, June 2nd. Others are scheduled for next Tuesday, June 9 and later in the month.
The confrontation with the police began to develop toward the conclusion of a two hour #SayHerName vigil in remembrance of Black women, transgender people and children murdered by racist police and vigilantes.
The vigil was organized by the REAL (Racial, Economic and Legal) Justice Coalition as part of a nationwide day to remember police brutality victims including seven-year-old Aiyana Stanley Jones killed in her sleep by police in Detroit on May 16, 2010. Speakers also called out the name of Rekia Boyd killed by Chicago police who were never charged for her murder. Just days earlier, a transgendered woman London Chanel was brutally stabbed to death not far from the rally location, a victim of domestic violence.
As the event was winding down, three cars of cops suddenly showed up and officers aggressively approached the peaceful gathering demanding to know who was in charge. Demonstrators responded with chants “Hands Up, Fight Back” and “the Cops and the Klan work hand-in-hand.”
While no arrests were made when the police first turned out, witnesses reported seeing police massed a short distance away. As people concluded chalking names on the sidewalks further south on Broad Street a short time later, over 50 police came on the scene accompanied by two police helicopters overhead. Two women were pushed to the ground, one suffering a broken wrist in the process. Five people, including the woman with the broken wrist were arrested.
In addition to the police assaults, witnesses reported that the fire department showed up and hosed off the hundreds of names chalked on the sidewalks, apparently so that Temple students would not stop to see them as they passed by. Chalking on sidewalks is not considered illegal in Philadelphia where it’s common to see people use this form of expression.
When activists gathered outside the 22nd Police District for jail solidarity with those arrested, police responded by arresting three more people and seizing the bull horn they were using. The three were subsequently released along with one of the women arrested in the original confrontation.
In response to the police riot, Megan Malachi, a member of REAL Justice and Action Against Black Genocide stated “The police conspired to destroy a peaceful vigil honoring the lives of Black women, girls and transgendered individuals. They disrespected our sacred place, and became violent when people resisted their aggression. The police have once again demonstrated their lack of respect for the people they are charged to protect and serve.”
This massive, militarized and overly aggressive response by Philadelphia police came just two months after the release of a Department of Justice study of the department’s use of deadly-force that claimed over 400 victims from 2007 to 2013. The DoJ study made 91 recommendations to address what they called “serious deficiencies in the department’s use of force policies.”
Apparently Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey, who co-chairs President Obama’s task force on 21st century policing designed to “improve police and community relations” has failed to address any of the recommendations made by the DoJ to improve his own department.
This attack on the anti-police brutality movement in Philadelphia is not isolated. Similar assaults and arrests have occurred in New York City, Cleveland and Baltimore and may be signs of a state crack-down on legal protests against racist police.
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