Fox 40 reports that on Monday, members of the California Black Caucus and the NAACP joined at the state capitol, brandishing huge pictures of five black men killed by police officers around the nation, including Eric Gardner, Michael Brown, Oscar Grant, and Kimani Gray. They called for action to address police interaction with people of color.
One participant stated, “It is so tragic that we have to do this today, in 2014.”
State Senator Holly Mitchell opined, “This was like the straw that broke the camel’s back that we hope will create an opportunity for dialogue and culture change around racism and bias in this country.” Telling a story of perceived racism, she said, “And the neighborhood security firm stopped and asked only him where is he going with an armful of books and doesn’t ask the other two. I have to clarify for him why that happened.”
Fox 40 said they contacted the Sacramento Police Department about the Black Caucus’ claim that the police targeted people of color. The department declined to offer a statement. Last week, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson praised the police department for its work.
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