On Saturday, cops in Georgia opened fire on a group of Black children.
The officers are now on paid leave.
[ [link removed] ]"Officer Rowell was shooting at our babies." Demand these cops are
held accountable now.[ [link removed] ][IMG]
Tell Waycross Mayor James: Fire these officers immediately.
[ [link removed] ]ADD YOUR NAME NOW
John,
For most kids, Saturday mornings are spent watching cartoons, sleeping in,
or playing outside — not being shot at by the police. But that’s exactly
what happened to a group of Black children in Waycross, Georgia on
Saturday.
Here’s what we know: A Black 16-year-old was driving his younger siblings
home before heading to a football game. Waycross Police Officer Jesse
Shook began following the car after the driver allegedly ran a stop sign,
but Officer Shook never turned on his sirens or flashed his lights to tell
the young driver to pull over. Instead, the cop followed the kids home.
Scared and confused, the 16-year-old stopped the car at an intersection
near their home and told the younger kids in the back seat — his
9-year-old brother, 12-year-old sister, and a 14-year-old friend — to run
home to get their father.
That’s when a second officer, Lt. Scott Rowell, arrived at the scene and
opened fire on the car and the children.^1 The youngest child said at
least seven shots were fired and that one bullet nearly struck him as he
ran.^2 Thankfully, neither the children nor anyone in the Waycross
neighborhood was hit by the bullets — but according to a witness, one of
the children was pistol-whipped by the police.^3
Officer Shook and Lt. Rowell’s reckless and racist decision to target,
tailgate, and open fire on a group of Black kids is reprehensible. Both
officers are now on paid administrative leave, and an investigation is
ongoing. But it doesn’t take an investigation to know this: Both police
officers must be held accountable for their actions.
[ [link removed] ]Tell Waycross Mayor Michael-Angelo James: Cops who shoot at Black
children and terrorize Black neighborhoods must be removed from the force.
Fire these officers immediately.
[ [link removed] ]ADD YOUR NAME NOW
John, this isn’t the first time Lt. Scott Rowell was a part of
an officer-involved shooting. In 2013, Alicia Herron called 911 for
medical assistance when she noticed that her fiance, Jack Lamar Roberson,
was acting erratically after taking his blood sugar medication. Instead of
paramedics, Rowell and two other police officers showed up. The officers
did nothing to de-escalate the situation or provide the medical assistance
Roberson clearly needed.
Unfortunately — as is often the case when cops are dispatched to handle
medical and mental health emergencies, particularly involving Black people
— the police officers only made matters worse. Minutes after they arrived
on the scene, Lt. Rowell and his partners shot and killed Roberson in
front of his mother and his fianceé.^4 Both women confirmed he was
unarmed, yet the Georgia Bureau of Investigation cleared the officers of
any criminal wrongdoing — allowing Rowell to return to the force and
continue terrorizing Black people.^5
Last Saturday, 7 years after the murder of Jack Lamar Roberson, Lt. Rowell
responded to another non-violent situation with unnecessary use of force.
He fired a gun at a group of Black children, in their neighborhood, in
front of their father. This time, Rowell will be held accountable for his
actions.
[ [link removed] ]John, we’re calling on Mayor James to break this dangerous
cycle and fire the officers who shot at Black children in South Georgia
last week. Add your name now to demand accountability.
In an interview, the children’s father expressed a fear Black parents know
all too well: That their child could be the next victim of police
brutality — their life cut short, reduced to a Twitter hashtag. “Officer
Rowell was shooting at our babies...How are they going to protect us when
they’re shooting at us?” Dominique Goodman Sr. asked. “They are babies.
What was the purpose of shooting?”^6
What happened in Waycross on Saturday — which could have ended in tragedy
— never should have happened in the first place. And sadly, the incident
only highlights a sad, dangerous truth in America: Black people are living
in terror.
Young Black children are afraid of the police because they know that one
altercation with a cop could kill them. They’ve seen it happen before.
Officers Shook and Rowell made that nightmare real by opening fire on the
children as they literally ran for their lives.
Black children in Waycross — and everywhere — deserve to feel safe. And
it’s up to us to hold reckless and racist cops accountable.
[ [link removed] ]Tell Mayor James: Fire Officers Shook and Rowell now.
Until justice is real,
-- Scott, Rashad, Arisha, Erika, Malachi, Marybeth, Leonard, Madison,
Ernie, McKayla and the rest of the Color Of Change team
References:
1. [ [link removed] ]Two police officers in Georgia put on leave after shooting at
minors. 9 August 2020, CNN.
2. [ [link removed] ]Waycross police shoot at teens following traffic stop, GBI says. 8
August 2020, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC).
3. [ [link removed] ]Georgia Cops Open Fire on Kids Running Home to get Father after
Traffic Stop. 8 August 2020, Pinac News.
4. [ [link removed] ]Police Fatally Shoot Man After Family Calls For Medical Assistance.
8 October 2013, Huffington Post.
5. [ [link removed] ]GBI report clears Waycross police officers in October shooting
death, DA says. 25 February 2014, The Florida Times-Union.
6. [ [link removed] ]Georgia family says cops shot at a car full of unarmed children,
report says. 8 August 2020, New York Post.
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[ [link removed] ]Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black
folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Please
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