Chicago, IL – On, Aug. 25, 250 people gathered in the University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC) campus quad to commemorate Michael Brown. UIC was one the colleges across the U.S. to hold demonstrations and student walk-outs on the day of Brown's funeral. At UIC, speakers read a list of Black lives lost as a result of police brutality. The UIC action was called by the Black Student Union (BSU). The national call for protests said Aug. 25 should have been Mike Brown's first day of college had he not been the victim of a racist police murder.

Evan Taylor, outreach chair of the BSU, challenged the university to reaffirm its alleged commitment to diversity. Taylor explained that, while UIC claims to be one of the most diverse universities in the country, the Black student population, in addition to their graduation and retention rates, has been declining. And, although UIC is a research institution, little to no research has been done on this issue.

The demonstration ended with the chant that Brown's death has inspired, “Hands up; don't shoot!”

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