Victim-blaming, the “all lives matter” mantra and police-involved shootings as lynchings were just some of the topics discussed in emotional tones Friday at a University of Denver gathering to reflect on recent shootings in Dallas, Baton Rouge and Minnesota.
“We need to understand that our children are at risk, and white mothers’ kids are not,” said Cheryl Montgomery, mother of a DU student. “They don’t have to say, ‘Watch out for yourselves. Watch out for the police.’”
Two in the audience of more than 100 grew up in Louisiana, where Alton Sterling was shot and killed by police on Tuesday. Recent DU graduate Brianca Smith grew up in New Orleans and Montgomery grew up 20 miles away from where the shooting happened.
“Just know, being black is not legal,” Smith said, telling stories of a childhood in which she lost “several” classmates to killings by police. “My dad got pulled out of the window at a traffic stop.”
For more than 50 minutes, attendees shared grievances, fears and hopes for racial understanding, passing a microphone around the room. They participated in two moments of silence. One was for by police in Minnesota, Sterling and the 135 other black people killed by police in 2016, , whose count includes many cases in which the person killed allegedly posed a threat that may have warranted deadly force. The other was for the five officers killed and seven others wounded by a shooter in Dallas on Thursday.
“Enough blaming victims, enough debate over whether ‘all lives matter,’” said Tracey Adams-Peters, DU director of inclusive excellence, who gave the main address. She decried the media’s use of unflattering photos and mentions of past crimes in stories about police shooting victims.
“Why does it matter if they ditched class in high school, or if they have a criminal record?” Adams-Peters said. “All police know when they stop them is that they have black or brown skin.”
One woman in the audience said that people aren’t implying that all lives don’t matter — only that they think black lives have been treated as if they matter less.
A white student who introduced herself as Anna said, “Being pro-black does not mean being anti-white.
“I am an ally,” she said.
Minutes after Adams-Peters discussed America’s history of lynchings, a 56-year-old DU alum said that recent police killings of black men are “modern-day lynchings.”
Adams-Peters stressed — and the vast majority agreed — that retaliation against officers is not the solution.
“In no way are the killings last night a … vindication of the (137) lost,” she said. “They only add.”
Through the different stories, the audience seemed to be in consensus that more individual and community action needs to be taken to address racial issues.
“Last night, I went to a protest (in Denver) for the first time,” said Elizabeth Wamukoya, a student in the audience who said her brother was unfairly targeted by police. “It was transformative.”
Several in the audience emphasized the necessity of talking about racism to children and family members, no matter what race. Several more stressed the role white people have to play.
“A white student came up to me and said, ‘I wasn’t given a box that says white privilege that says what rights I have over you,’” a student said. “(White privilege) isn’t in the Constitution. But it exists.”
“As a white person, I ask myself, ‘Is this my fight?’” Anna said. “And the answer is ‘yes.’”
“We can’t affect what happened in Louisiana, necessarily,” a DU library staff member said. “We can’t affect what happened in Minnesota, necessarily. But we can change what happens right here.”
