Marchers take to Sacramento streets in solidarity with others outraged by Tyre Nichols police beating video
“To hear that he was a Sacramento son, it just made me feel like we have to stand up. We have to stand up and be reminded that this isn't just a Memphis thing or a Sacramento or a California thing, this is a national thing,” said Isaiah McClymont from the I Am SAC Foundation.
“To hear that he was a Sacramento son, it just made me feel like we have to stand up. We have to stand up and be reminded that this isn't just a Memphis thing or a Sacramento or a California thing, this is a national thing,” said Isaiah McClymont from the I Am SAC Foundation.
“To hear that he was a Sacramento son, it just made me feel like we have to stand up. We have to stand up and be reminded that this isn't just a Memphis thing or a Sacramento or a California thing, this is a national thing,” said Isaiah McClymont from the I Am SAC Foundation.
The reaction came in real-time Friday to body camera videos from the violent interaction between Memphis police against former Sacramento man Tyre Nichols.
A gathering outside California’s Capitol building was convened, organizers said, to support the community as Memphis police publicly released video of the Jan. 7 police beating.
“The things that they were saying to that man, the verbal abuse that came with the physical abuse that I heard, my heart goes out to his mother,” said community activist Stevante Clark. “Matter of fact, she can have my whole heart.”
Clark’s organization, the I Am SAC Foundation, named in honor of his late brother Stephon Clark who was killed by Sacramento police officers in March 2018, organized the gathering.
“I just don't understand. Five police officers…not even one of them says this is not right,” said Zion Taddese with the I Am SAC Foundation. “It's just so hard to comprehend. It's just so emotional.”
The group expressed a range of emotions after viewing the video on their phones as soon as it was released.
“The feeling you get watching something like that, there's really no words to describe it. I was sick to my stomach,” said Sarah Mangus with the I Am SAC Foundation. “I had to walk away a few times. It just breaks your heart.”
| MORE | Northern California reacts to release of videos of Tyre Nichols’ beating by police
Knowing Nichols’ ties to Sacramento made the video release hit all the more close to home.
“To hear that he was a Sacramento son, it just made me feel like we have to stand up. We have to stand up and be reminded that this isn't just a Memphis thing or a Sacramento or a California thing, this is a national thing,” said Isaiah McClymont from the I Am SAC Foundation. “We have to be in solidarity as a movement throughout the nation.”
The two dozen demonstrators also made a call to action as they took to the streets of Sacramento.
“If we're not coming with the recommendations on how to prevent these types of atrocities to happen again, you are part of the problem, not part of the solution,” Clark said.
Clark pointed out that he's not anti-police, but he is calling for an end to police violence.
“Anybody can come out here and protest. That is so easy,” he said. “But solidarity without organization is useless.”