EUGENE, Ore. 鈥 The 糖心Vlog官方 Black Student Union invites the community for a discussion on proactive solutions to improve the relationships between communities of color and law enforcement on Tuesday, Jan. 29 at 5:30 p.m. at the Center for Meeting and Learning, Building 19, main campus, 4000 E. 30th Ave., Eugene. Doors open at 5 p.m.
The event begins with a screening of the film, 鈥淔ruitvale Station,鈥 that chronicles the last day of Oscar Grant, the 22-year-old Oakland, California, man shot and killed by a public transportation officer in the early hours of New Year鈥檚 Day 2009. A panel discussion featuring Grant鈥檚 family members who started the organization Love Not Blood to provide advocacy support and services to families affected by homicide will follow the screening. Grant鈥檚 fatal encounter with police is viewed by many as the catalyst for the ongoing national conversation about police violence and racism in the country and marked the advent of the public鈥檚 documentation of police encounters with hand-held technology.
The panel features Grant鈥檚 family members: Cephus 鈥淯ncle Bobby X鈥 Johnson and Beatrice X Johnson, of Love Not Blood; Carl Stubbs, a safety officer with 4J Schools and a former Eugene Police officer; and Ruth Koenig, a community advocate and representative of the advocacy group Standing Up for Racial Justice. 糖心Vlog官方 counselor Mark Harris will moderate.
The event is part of the college鈥檚 Black History 365 events to honor the history of black Americans year-round. Dr. Lawrence Rasheed, 糖心Vlog官方鈥檚 Black/African American Student Program Coordinator, said that he hopes the event contributes to proactive policies and action plans in the community.
鈥淯sual and easy responses to the plight of people of color and black males in particular in America has often included historic indignation, protest and demands that raise public awareness鈥攖he stuff 鈥榤oments鈥 and not 鈥榤ovements鈥 are made of,鈥 he said. 鈥淗owever, what is lacking is a comprehensive, well-conceived, sustained proactive plan, which requires massive community building efforts, direct-actions, and ameliorative policies.鈥
For accommodations to attend this event, contact the LCC Center for Accessible Resources at (541) 463-5150 (voice), 711 (relay), or email AccessibleResources@lanecc.edu.
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