Students react to recent killing of Daunte Wright
Photo submitted by Awnna Bass-Funke
Students participate in the walk out at the high school. Students bring posters and flags to state their opinion.
May 21, 2021
People of color are one of the main victims of police brutality. Incidents of police brutality have increased since the past year. On April 11, Daunte Wright was a victim of police brutality.
Wright was stopped for having an air freshener on his front mirror. When police looked him up in the system, they noticed he had a warrant on him. When they tried to arrest him, he ran back to his car and tried to flee. Officer Kimberly Potter then “mistakenly” took out her pistol instead of her taser. Potter shot at Wright, leaving him dead at the scene. Although this incident occurred in Minnesota, the killing has sparked many riots and protests all over the world.
Students were not only saddened by yet another killing of a person of color, they were also angry because of how often this is happening. While some stay silent, there are those who stand up for victims of police brutality. Students decided to organize a walk out to show their support.
Many students showed up to the walkout. One of the students was junior Ariam Mussiel. Mussiel was there to support and get her opinion out. She was glad that so many people had the same mindset as her and were behind her all the way through.
¨I thought it was amazing seeing three hundred plus students out there in support of the Black Lives Matter movement,¨ Mussiel said. She thought “a lot of students did not care about this issue.”
Seeing these kinds of killings on the internet can be hard for many people. Among many other saddened and frustrated people, senior Will Raymond participated in the walk out.
I thought it was amazing seeing three hundred plus students out there in support of the Black Lives Matter movement
— Ariam Mussiel
¨The murders of brown and black people in America are horrifying and traumatic. Watching the videos reminds me that we as young people have to demand for change,” Raymond said.
Raymond is a proud believer in the Black Lives Matter movement and seeing all those students show up to the walk out made him realize he was not alone.
“It feels incredible to see so many of my peers stand up and and say human life should be valued in America,” Raymond said.
During the Wright incident, The Derrick Chauvin case was also happening. Last May, riots and protests broke to the streets because of the killing of George Floyd. Many wounds are still healing after the incident. Mussiel felt saddened that she had to experience this the same time as The Floyd case and how things can easily change.
¨Those last two weeks were very tense. Although I didn’t watch every minute of the trial, I watched clips of what happened during the trial. The killing of Daunte Wright and the points that Chauvin’s lawyer was making had me surprised and sad at the same time. I wasn’t expecting another innocent black life to be taken away from us during this intense trial,¨ Mussiel said.
Students want to be heard. The community has tried its best to put the student voice first during the past month. Though this is a small opportunity for the community, something big could come out of it and could lead to many other possibilities in the future.
