On Sunday, April 12, two dozen people gathered on Ankeny Field at Whitman College to protest the murders of people of color at the hands of police. Protesters wore black hoodies inscribed with the words “Justice for _____” followed by the names of victims of police violence.
The name of the event, “Justice for _____”, calls for justice for the victims of police brutality in this country, but it calls for more than a retroactive remedy. It conjures both cynicism and hope—cynicism because nearly every day, new names appear etched on tombstones and forgotten by the courts and the media, because we need to leave room for all the deaths to come; but also hope because the phrase “justice for _____” is filled with limitless possibility. Achieving justice is about constantly renewing a fervent and passionate kindness and turning each day into an opportunity to shape the next.
Here, then, is what the event demanded: justice for those already murdered, justice for those in the crosshairs, and justice for the rest, who—if we don’t tear down this brutality—will eventually find themselves the targets of a police force exempt from responsibility.
Victor White III
John Crawford III
Walter L. Scott