Falcon Heights, Minn. — Grieving residents from across the Twin Cities gathered to pay their respects Friday afternoon at the suburban street corner where a black man was shot and killed by police.
They were strangers to each other and of different races, yet they cried, hugged and offered each other words of comfort over the death of cafeteria manager Philando Castile, 32, Wednesday evening in Falcon Heights in suburban St. Paul, Minn. The aftermath of his death was captured on a live video broadcast through Facebook by his girlfriend Diamond “Lavish” Reynolds.
Tarina Robinson’s eyes were filled with tears as she looked at the memorial that was growing at the corner of Larpenteur Avenue and Frye Street. The site had become a makeshift memorial for Castile, with stuffed animals, signs and bouquets of flowers. Passers-by wrote their condolences on the sidewalk in colored chalk.
“I saw the video online. My kids sent it to me,” said Robinson, 45, who is black and has lived in the area all her life. “If you have a heart, you can’t sit back and accept this.”
As Robinson’s voice faltered, Kristin Olson, a stranger, reached over to give her a hug. Olson lives in St. Anthony Village, which is next to Falcon Heights and employs Jeronimo Yanez, the officer who killed Castile.
Like most of those who gathered at the memorial, Olson is white.
“I’ve been pulled over by that officer rolling through a stop sign,” Olson said. “But I’m still alive.”
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