Atlanta, GA - On Sunday morning, August 4, around 50 community members gathered at Park Avenue Baptist Church for a service in memory of Sonya Massey and the lives taken by police murders in Georgia. Many families who lost loved ones to police murder were present and shared their stories. 

The service began with song, prayer and verses highlighting struggle against injustice. Reverend Keyanna Jones gave a powerful sermon which expressed the frustration of the Georgia families still fighting to get justice for their loved ones, some of them for more than 20 years. Patricia Scott, mother of Raymond Scott, says she has been seeking accountability for her son since 2003, who was brutalized by the police and later died in Cobb County Jail. Years of struggle against the injustice system have only strengthened the families’ determination to keep fighting.

Arnitra Fallins, daughter of Deacon Johnny Holloman Sr., spoke to the congregation saying “Brought up we were taught that police were supposed to protect and serve us. My father called the police for just that reason. Instead, the person who he called to help him was the very person who killed him.” Deacon Holloman was tased to death by an Atlanta Police officer in August 2023 after calling the police for a minor traffic accident. “A traffic ticket should not be a death sentence,” Fallins added. 

Jimmy Hill, who has been active in the movement since the killing of his son Jimmy Atchison in 2019 by APD and the FBI, pointed to the hypocrisy of the injustice system. “The Department of Justice says it is committed to vigorously prosecuting officers who willingly disregard the constitution and use their authority to violate the rights of others, yet this has not happened. Words not matching action is called manipulation, refusing to be held accountable is gaslighting. And that's exactly what this is. Why does the Department of Justice continue to rob my family of justice?” Atchison was killed during the carrying out of an unfounded warrant by an APD/FBI joint task force. The killer cop was indicted in a local grand jury but has been running from accountability as the case was moved to federal court. Hill ended with the demand “Justice for Jimmy Atchison!” 

“We have to be persistent and wear these suckers down,” said Reverend Jones, stressing the need to keep up the fight against police terror. Attendees left the service ready to struggle for change alongside the families.

#AtlantaGA #KeyannaJones #JohnnyHolloman #JimmyAtchison #RaymondScott #SonyaMassey #PoliceCrimes

Jacksonville, FL – On Monday, July 29, around 75 attendees gathered at Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing Park in Jacksonville for a vigil honoring the life of Sonya Massey.

Speakers pointed out how tragically common it is for police to kill people in the communities they claim to protect and serve. The need for a Public Safety Committee in Jacksonville was a common sentiment from community members who spoke at the vigil.

“It is unacceptable that Black people have to live in fear of being harassed and killed by police even when they are the ones who called them,” said event co-organizer Kiana Blaylock. Community members chanted, “Say her name – Sonya Massey.”

Organized by the Jacksonville Community Action Committee, speakers from multiple community organizations, including the Transgender Awareness Project, Northside Coalition of Jacksonville, Take Em Down Jax, UNF Students for a Democratic Society and the Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity network reflected on the loss of Sonya Massey.

After a moment of silence, event organizers encouraged vigil attendees to get involved for the fight for civilian oversight through a Public Safety Committee in Jacksonville.

#JacksonvilleFL #Jax #JCAC #UNF #UNFSDS #SDS #SonyaMassey

Baton Rouge, LA – On July 28, around 20 community members gathered in a local hair salon to hold a vigil for Sonya Massey, a Black woman who was wrongfully killed by state of Illinois Deputy Sean Grayson. The vigil took place five days after the release of body cam footage by Illinois police. The goal of the event was to link the killing of Sonya Massey to the killing of Alton Sterling by Baton Rouge police almost exactly eight years ago. Participants called for an end to the ongoing police brutality that plagues Louisiana.

The vigil provided space for attendees to discuss their feelings and reactions to the killing. One attendee felt that deputy Sean Grayson “baited” Massey in order to kill her. Laramie Griffin, an organizer with Evolve, pointed out that the officer who killed Massey had his body camera off and was only recorded because the other deputy had left his turned on. Most of the conversation focused on changes that would be necessary to end the killings.

“What needs to happen is that police are held accountable when they turn the body cameras off,” commented a representative of the Nation of Islam.

Laramie Griffin of Evolve says that his organization’s immediate demands are for Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. The organization calls for the shutdown of the “brave cave” building, the location of a Baton Rouge Police Department black-site and torture warehouse. Evolve also demands that police agencies no longer be allowed to turn off body-worn cameras at any time during a shift, and for footage to be released to the public within 72 hours of any incident.

Griffin also noted that reforms passed after the killing of Alton Sterling, like Louisiana Act 272, may have saved Massey’s life if they were law in Illinois. This 2017 Louisiana law expanded the grounds for police decertification.

The event was hosted by Victory Over Louisiana Violence (Evolve) and the Party for Socialism and Liberation, and was well represented by local groups, including Not Your Past Ministry, New Orleans for Community Oversight of the Police, the Baton Rouge NAACP, and a local Black gun rights organization all attended.

The vigil ended with a hopeful tone, playing a music video of the song change, dedicated to Sonya by Shreveport musician RayDaYungin.

#BatonRougeLA #SonyaMassey #Evolve #NOCOP #PSL #NotYourPastMinistry #NAACP

Tampa, FL – On July 27, close to 100 members of the community came to a vigil remembering Sonya Massey. Sonya Massey was a Black woman murdered in her home by a police officer.

Since then, the officer was charged with three counts of first-degree murder, but that is not enough, as the murder of Black folks at the hands of the police is an all too common occurrence. As the community honored her life with a table of flowers and sending candles down river, they also called for a change in how policing is handled.

The Tampa Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (TAARPR), Andrew Joseph Foundation, Poor Minority Justice Association (PMJA), and more came out. They called for protection of the Citizens Review Board (CRB) and bringing it further by establishing a Community Police Accountability Council for more oversight of the police.

The Tampa Police Department is pushing the city council to dissolve the CRB due to a House Bill 601, a law passed by Governor Ron DeSantis preventing cities from establishing civilian oversight of the police. House Bill 601 is a law in a long list of laws passed by DeSantis to repress protesters and freedom of speech in the wake of the George Floyd uprising.

Gareth Dawkins, a member of TAARPR at the vigil, stated, “The police will always push back against any form of accountability, which is why institutions like the CRB must be protected.”

Another demand pushed by the community was to bring an end to qualified immunity. This fight is personal to the Andrew Joseph Foundation and the Joseph family, as qualified immunity protects from being charged the officer whose actions resulted in the death of their son, Andrew Joseph III.

With these demands the Tampa community shows that they will not stand for police murders in Tampa or anywhere across the country.

#TampaFL #TAARPR #GeorgeFloydRebellion #GeorgeFloyd #SonyaMassey #PMJA #CRB #CPAC #PoliceCrimes