“Just keeping John Crawford’s name a part of the national movement, it’s been really important, especially as we try to get justice for him and his family,” said Julius Eason, who is affiliated with the local chapter of Black Lives Matter.
Crawford, 22, was shot and killed on Aug. 5 2014 by Beavercreek Police Officer Sean Williams, who responded to a report of a man with a gun inside the store. Crawford was carrying a BB/pellet gun that he picked up from one of the store’s helves. A grand jury declined to indict Williams.
Four days after Crawford was killed, Michael Brown, 18, was fatally shot by Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Mo. That sparked days of violent protests and riots in the predominantly black city. There were also high-profile shootings in Baltimore, South Carolina and Cincinnati.
“This isn’t an isolated incident,” Eason said. “People like to scream ‘all lives matter.’ Of course they do, but right now black lives don’t matter in this country and they are treated less than equal.”
Eason was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct during a demonstration at Fairfield Common Mall on Dec. 24.
“I think it’s important to highlight the ridiculousness of being arrested for such an act,” he said. “The point was to trespass and disrupt business as usual.”
Talis Gage of Black Lives Matter said the protests and demonstrations after Crawford’s death have helped people learn more about the law and the justice system.
“For the John Crawford case, we’re going to keep fighting,” he said. “It’s not something that’s going to go away. It’s progress because we’re going to make sure that we do what we can to minimize these things from happening again. What happened to him could’ve happened to anyone.”
In addition to organizations that publicly oppose Crawford’s shooting, supporters of the city’s police force held a demonstration outside of the Walmart that attracted more than 100 people.
Michael Crain, a local police chaplain who organized the rally, said the anniversaries ofCrawford and Brown’s deaths will help gauge the pulse of the community and where they stand on the issue now compared to a year ago.
“I would like to think that as a community, the farther we are from these events, the closer we come together,” he said. “I think the way the Miami Valley handled this was dramatically different than Ferguson or Baltimore. I think that’s a testament of the people who live in the area.”
There are “good people” on both sides of the issue, Crain said, and
he hopes people see that law enforcement isn’t the “bad guy.”
“Sometimes they have to take action,” he said. “Not everybody is going to like what they do.”
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