Quote of the Day

We want an end to police murders of Black people. So, this moment [in the wake of the death of Tyre Nichols] isn’t about Black vs. white, it’s about blue vs. Black. Diversity cannot and does not solve systemic problems.

If we don’t change the structure of policing and safety in our country, Black people will continue to be killed, by police of all races. The evidence is clear – investing in communities will keep us safe, not the police.

– Rashad Robinson
Quoted in Jessica Corbett’s article,
“‘Sheer Brutality’: Released Footage Shows
Fired Memphis Cops Beating Tyre Nichols”
Common Dreams
January 27, 2023

Above: Tyre Nichols (1994-2023). Nichols was a 29-year-old Black father, amateur photographer and longtime skateboarder who died January 10, 2023 from kidney failure and cardiac arrest, three days after he was brutally beaten by five police officers during a traffic stop. The officers were fired earlier this month and indicted yesterday (1/26/23) with second-degree murder, kidnapping and other charges for their role in Nichols’s death.

Related Off-site Links:
Tyre Nichols’ Parents Remember Son as “Beautiful Soul” and Describe Video of Beating by Memphis Police – Democracy Now! (January 27, 2023).
Tyre Nichols: Five Memphis Ex-Police Officers Charged With Murder Over Motorist’s Death – Victoria Bekiempis (The Guardian, January 26, 2023).
The City of Memphis Releases Videos of Tyre Nichols’ Arrest and Beating – Jaclyn Diaz, Emma Bowman, Emily Olson and Becky Sullivan (NPR News, January 27, 2023).
A Timeline of the Investigations Into Tyre Nichols’ Death After a Traffic Stop and Arrest by Memphis Police – Travis Caldwell (CNN News, January 27, 2023).
Tyre Nichols Remembered as Beautiful Soul With Creative Eye – Adam Beam, Travis Loller and Claire Galofaro (AP News, January 27, 2023).

UPDATES: In 67 Minutes of Video, Brutality Followed by Nonchalance – Matt Sedensky (AP News, January 29, 2023).
“Elite” Police Units Face More Scrutiny as Memphis SCORPION Unit Disbanded Over Tyre Nichols Death – Democracy Now! (January 31, 2023).
Howard Professor Justin Hansford and Abolitionist Andrea Ritchie on Tyre Nichols and Calls for No More Police – Democracy Now! (February 1, 2023).
“No More”: At Tyre Nichols Funeral, VP Harris, Rev. Sharpton Join Family and Demand Police Accountability – Democracy Now! (February 2, 2023).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Remembering Philando Castile and Demanding Abolition of the System That Targets and Kills People of Color
• Nancy A. Heitzeg: Quote of the Day – March 31, 2016
• “An Abolitionist Demand”: Progressive Perspectives on Transforming Policing in the United States
• Hamilton Nolan: Quote of the Day – August 3, 2021

See also the previous chronologically-ordered Wild Reed posts:
• Rallying in Solidarity with Eric Garner and Other Victims of Police Brutality
• In Minneapolis, Rallying in Solidarity with Black Lives in Baltimore
• “Say Her Name” Solidarity Action for Sandra Bland
• “We Are All One” – #Justice4Jamar and the 4th Precinct Occupation
• Something to Think About – March 25, 2016
• “This Doesn't Happen to White People”
• “I Can’t Breathe”: The Murder of George Floyd
• He Called Mama. He Has Called Up Great Power
• Honoring George Floyd
• “New and Very Dangerous”: The Extreme Right-Wing Infiltration of the George Floyd Protests
• Mayor Melvin Carter: “The Anger Is Real, and I Share It With You”
• Marianne Williamson: Quote of the Day – June 2, 2020
• Trevor Noah on the “Dominoes of Racial Injustice”
• Emma Jordan-Simpson: “There Will Be No Peace Without Justice”
• Out and About – Spring 2020
• The Language of the Oppressor
• A Very Intentional First Day of the Year
• The Problem Is Ultimately Bigger Than Individuals. It’s Systemic
• Minnesota Governor Tim Walz: “We Need to Make Systemic Changes”
• “Let This Be a Turning Point”
• “And Still and All, It Continues”
• Remembering George Floyd on the First Anniversary of His Murder
• “This Has Got to Stop”
• Under Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Fry, “More Negligence and Suffering”
• Love, Justice, and Amir Locke
• Remembering Tekle Sundberg: “He Deserved to Live; He Deserved a Chance to Heal”