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| Wisconsin Student Protests - Melissa Sargent |
After a high school teenager from
Wisconsin High School was shot and killed by the police, students from the
school as well as the university took to the streets to protest police
brutality that the United States police is now well-known for.
Tony Robinson, a 19 year old
school boy, was shot and killed by the police after an altercation with a
police officer named Matt Kenny who was investigating a traffic emergency call involving
an alleged battery. The concerned officer is also known to have killed a 48-year
old man in 2007, in what police called “suicide by cop”.
A crowd of concerned students
estimated to be over 100, gathered at the state capitol building on 10 March, Tuesday
to protest the killing of an unarmed teenager by Madison police.
The crowd consisted of university
students and high school students from Wisconsin, who absconded their Monday
morning lessons to show support for Tony Robinson and make their stance known
against the senseless killing of the teenager.
Protesters could be seen holding
signs and placards denouncing police brutality and urging police not to shoot.
This is a continuation of a movement that was born when another teenager
Michael Brown, was shot and killed by the police in Fergusson last year in
August, 2014.
The shooting of Tony Robinson, a
black African American teenager, shows that racial tensions are entrenched in
Madison.
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| Tony Robinson - Photo: Facebook |
The teenager was shot and killed
by a police officer on the Friday of 6 March at 6:30 pm (US Time).Somebody
called the police to report a 19-year old teenager who was zigzagging in the
traffic and suspected to have assaulted someone.
After locating the source of
disturbance that was coming from an apartment, the police officer bust into the
apartment and was confronted by the teenager, who is alleged to have assaulted
the officer, before the officer opened fire on him. The teenager was shot dead.
A recorded audio posted on YouTube,
shows that the police were aware of Tony’s age and name before sending a team
to deal with the situation. The teenager was seen shouting and obstructing traffic.
Later on, when an officer was dispatched to the scene, the teenager assaulted a
friend but he was not carrying any dangerous weapon.
The student protesters marched
from the Capitol Building to the City County Building where they demanded to
speak to the Madison Police Chief. The group of protesters included Tony
Robinson’s sister and leaders of anti-police brutality movements. The group
chanted slogans when they were told that Mike Koval, the Police Chief was not
there.
Some of the people who joined the
protest include students from the Sun Prairie High School, where Tony had just
graduated.
The shooting of Robinson has put
pressure on the governor of Wisconsin, Scott Walker, to provide more funding
for the ongoing investigation. Last year in April, Wisconsin approved a bill
that requires external investigators to investigate fatal cases involving
police officers.
The Madison Chief Police Officer
did not appear in person to address the protesters but he issued an apology via
the local police website:
“Reconciliation
cannot begin without my stating ‘I am sorry,’ and I don’t think I can say this
enough. I am sorry. I hope that, with time, Tony’s family and friends can
search their hearts to render some measure of forgiveness,” The Police Chief said.
Currently, it seems the top
officials and politicians in the city, from the Democratic Party to the Mayor
are focusing on completing the investigations. The Madison City Mayor promised
to issue a transparent report of the findings once they are concluded.Meanwhile,
the protesters marched peacefully over the weekend while observing a vigil in
remembrance of Tony Robinson.
About 240,000 people live in Madison.
The population of the city is predominantly white, and only 7% of locals are
African American.
Just like most cases of this nature,
the officer who shot Robinson has been placed on an administrative leave with pay.
Investigations usually take longer than expected, but the students are planning
more protests.
Last year, Robinson was sentenced
to six months in jail with probation, when he was found guilty of carrying out
an armed robbery.
Source – TheGuardian [Theguardian.com] / YouTube
Photos – YouTube/ Facebook / Mellisa Sargent
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