After George Zimmerman was acquitted of killing Florida teen Travyon Martin, we organized a march of more than 5,000 people from the Atlanta University Center to CNN Center. After the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., young activists organized a march of another 5,000 from CNN Center to the Center for Civil and Human Rights.
On Oct. 22, those organizers formed a human chain across I-75/85 to block traffic and bring attention to police brutality and the mass incarceration of people of color. In September, I traveled with a group of Atlanta attorneys to serve as legal observers during the Ferguson protests. The overarching sentiment was the police and city placed little to no value in residents’ lives. The common theme was, “Black lives matter.”
However, after the marches end, the protesters go home. Chants fade. Those of us who care deeply about protecting and affirming the lives of our children are left with a question: “What’s next?”
The question has a much deeper connotation than simply what is the next “activity” to address police brutality. The real question that I am often asked, sometimes in a whisper, by African-American parents regardless of their economic status, is, “How can we protect our kids from police brutality?” We know through our own life experiences, our sons and daughters can experience violence at the hands of police.
According to a report by the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, Operation Ghetto Storm, “police, and to a lesser extent security guards and vigilantes, kill a black person every 28 hours.” Our young men are often viewed as “dangerous” and “suspect.” As a father of teenage boys, I know the dual dangers of my sons not only being crime victims, but also victims of a police officer treating them like criminals without knowing they are “good kids” on the honor roll.
On Oct. 24 and 25, nearly 500 people and activists from more than 40 organizations attended a conference at the Interdenominational Theological Center entitled: “Empowering Ourselves Now Conference: Asserting Our Rights and Educating Beyond Ferguson.”
The intergenerational and interfaith gathering brought together youth organizers with seasoned activists. Detroit poet/activist Jessica Care Moore served as honorary co-chair, and Taurean Russell, co-founder of Hands Up United, provided updates on the Ferguson protests. Local presenters were individuals who have developed programs to encourage social justice engagement.
Other workshops included discussions on legislation to require police body cameras with state Sen. Vincent Fort, state Rep. Dee Dawkins-Haigler and Atlanta Councilwoman Keisha Lance-Bottoms; the utilization of hip hop to engage youth; “Organizing 101,” the power of parenting; spiritual healing; serving as legal observers; the importance of judicial elections; developing strong young men; strategies to stop violence against women, and asserting your legal rights safely when encountering the police.
Conference Co-chair Aurielle Lucier captured the spirit of the event: “What’s next? Our work together! We must love and protect each other.”
Mawuli Mel Davis is a partner at the Davis Bozeman Law Firm, where he practices civil rights, personal injury and criminal defense law. President of the DeKalb Lawyers Association, Davis co-chaired the conference and is co-founder of Let us Make Man.
