Regis Korchinski-Paquet
Regis Korchinski-Paquet was an Afro-Indigenous woman who died when Toronto Police responded to a 911 call at her home. Canada is not immune to racism and police brutality, as Canadians often dismiss incidents like Regis' because of our polite tolerant reputation. Regis was described as strong and courageous, even in the face of adversity. Every day she texted her siblings, "Good Morning, I love you!". Do not let her become a faceless statistic. Say her name. Let us continue to demand justice for Black and Indigenous women by remembering those who have lost their lives to racial injustice.
Artist: Charlotte Carbone
Available in 2.5"x3.5"
Rekia Boyd
Rekia Boyd was 22 when she suffered a fatal gunshot wound on March 21st, 2012. At the time, she and a group of friends were at a Chicago park when off-duty detective, Dante Servin, approached the group and a verbal altercation occurred. The detective fired five shots from his car at the group, one victim Antonio Cross was shot in the hand and survived his injuries but Rekia Boyd was killed. When asked why he had fired his weapon, Servin claimed that he had seen Cross drawing a gun. No weapon was ever found.
Servin was charged with involuntary manslaughter but to the outrage of Boyd’s family and protestors, he was acquitted in 2015. Boyd’s brother, Martinez Sutton voiced his frustrations, “You go through those experiences, and the person who murdered your sister still gets to walk around and still collect a pension from the city then why would anybody have faith in the court system”.
In 2019, three years after his resignation, Servin appealed to the court to have the charges expunged from his record, claiming that he had since had trouble finding work and wanted a fresh start. His request was denied by the court. However, in a surprising moment of humanity, Servin approached Boyd’s brother Sutton after the hearing and the two spoke privately for some time. While Servin did not comment on their conversation, Sutton spoke to reporters telling them, “... I wanted to hear him out, what he had to say. He wanted to hear what I had to say...I guess he felt that I just was angry and mad and just hated him... I said that’s too much energy to give you, I don’t want to waste that energy on building something negative. Instead ... I’m going to build something positive.”
Artist: Karen Chen
Available in 2.5"x3.5" and 8.5"x11"
Rodney King
Rodney King was an American activist and a victim of police brutality by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). In March of 1991, Rodney had led police on a high-speed chase through Los Angeles. When police had finally caught up to Rodney, he was ordered out of the car. Four officers then kicked unarmed Rodney repeatedly and beat him with batons for 15 minutes. Video evidence demonstrates that more than a dozen other officers stood idly by, watching and giving their commentary on the beating. The LAPD’s review found that the officers had struck Rodney with batons between fifty-three and fifty-six times. Rodney’s injuries resulted in skull fractures, broken bones and teeth, and permanent brain damage. This excessive use of force was noticed world-wide.
At Rodney’s press conference, he spoke to reporters from his wheelchair, with his only visible injuries being a broken leg in a cast, a badly cut and swollen face, bruises throughout his body, and a burned area on his chest where he had been jolted with a stun gun. Rodney described how he had knelt, spread his hands out, and slowly tried to move so as not to make any "stupid moves", being hit across the face by a billy club and shocked. Rodney noted that he was scared for his life as they drew down on him. Though the four LAPD officers were tried on charges of use of excessive force, three of the four were acquitted of their crimes. This sparked public outcry, and eventually, this trial was persecuted in the federal court where only two of the officers were found guilty. Later on, a jury found the city of Los Angeles liable, and awarded Rodney $3.8 million in damages.
Artist: Steven Kim
Available in 2.5"x3.5"
Shukri Abdi
Shukri, from Somalia, grew up in a Kenyan refugee camp between 2000 and 2017 before moving to the UK where she settled in Bury along with her mother and siblings through the vulnerable person’s resettlement scheme. The body of Shukri Abdi was found in the River Irwell in Bury, Greater Manchester in June 2019. A group of children were with her at the river in the period before she died. Her mother Zam Zam Ture told the inquest at The Old Police Station, Heywood, in February that she believed her daughter was with two girls who were not her friends. One of the accompanying children confessed to threatening to kill Shukri before her death. Shukri’s mother told the inquest that her daughter was “scared” of water and could not swim.
The girl’s loved ones do not believe the death was an accident and have raised concerns about the police investigation. The inquest into her death has been adjourned with no date confirmed to resume, but the incident itself has sparked other discussions about prejudice in this country’s schools. Shurki’s death lay bare the realities of racism, Islamophobia, and xenophobia in contemporary society. The recent Black Lives Matter protests have brought light to this case and renewed calls to demand a fair investigation into her death. Without a doubt, Shukri’s death was not taken nearly as seriously as it should have been.
Artist: Shehryar Saharan
Available in 2.5"x3.5"
Tamir Rice
Tamir Rice was only 12 years old when a Cleveland officer shot and killed him on November 22, 2014. Surveillance footage shows Tamir playing at a local park with a toy pistol. He tucks it away as he sits down in a gazebo. That’s when officer Timothy Loehmann shot and killed Tamir, just seconds after he arrived.
Police were responding to a call about a man reportedly pointing a gun at random people. The officers involved claimed it looked as though he was about to draw, and fired. The video footage of the murder was released to the public, however, multiple investigations ruled in Leohmann’s favour. Only two and a half years later did the Cleveland Police Department fire Loehmann because he had provided false information when he applied to the department – not because he shot and killed a 12-year-old boy.
Mellow Ferguson was the same age as Tamir when he watched the news of his death. "That incident right there, cause I was a little kid, definitely didn't like them, they killing people my age over a BB gun." In the places where kids are supposed to play, the police went in and fatally shot a 12-year-old.
Tamir Rice was among the first names to mobilize the arc of the Black Lives Matter Movement. A kid playing in a park.
Artist: Ava Hambleton
Available in 2.5"x3.5"
Tanisha Anderson
Tanisha Anderson died in 2014 while in police custody in Cleveland. Her family called 911 seeking help during one of her mental health episodes. By the end of the visit, she was lying on the pavement, handcuffed and not breathing. The officers failed to notify Cleveland EMS in a timely manner. Shortly after Tanisha Anderson died, the U.S. Justice Department found, among other things, many Cleveland police officers are not properly trained to handle encounters with residents with mental illness. Cleveland is one of many police departments around the world that do not practice proper de-escalation techniques with mentally and medically ill individuals.
Artist: Catherine Cheung
Available in 2.5"x3.5"
Timothy Russell & Malissa Williams
Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams were two homeless black persons who were first spotted in a 1979 light-blue Chevrolet Malibu in Cleveland, Ohio by an officer, who then checked the license plate, which uncovered no transgressions. The officer attempted to pull the car over for a turn signal violation, and when they did not pull over, this led to a police chase. Several more officers joined the chase, believing the sounds of the car backfiring to be gunshots.
Later, no weapons were found in the vehicle. After a 22 mile chase, the car stopped at a middle school parking lot, where thirteen officers fired 137 bullets into the car, killing both Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams on Nov 29, 2012. Their deaths are two of many killings of unarmed African Americans. Two years later, Officer Michael Brelo, who had fired 49 of the bullets, was charged with two counts of voluntary manslaughter.
Artist: Adhora Mir
Available in 2.5"x3.5"
Trayvon Martin
17-year-old Trayvon Martin was unarmed when he was killed by a man of mixed race. His shooter George Zimmerman was a neighborhood watch guard who on the night of Martin’s death, deemed him suspicious. He called police to report Martin’s appearance; a hooded black male walking out of a 7-Eleven in the rain who might be on drugs. Police asked and advised Zimmerman not to follow Martin, but he opposed.
Zimmerman accused and started a dispute with Martin. With no witnesses around, Trayvon was shot in his left chest with Zimmerman’s 9mm semiautomatic handgun. Later, when he was questioned by police, he used self-defence as the reason why he shot Martin; he was charged with murder. When Trayvon was found, he had no gun; Just a pack of cigarettes, his cell phone, a pack of skittles, and a can of Arizona iced tea. Until this very day, Trayvon’s case still remains partially open due to insufficient evidence.
Artist: IBK Babatunde
Available in 2.5"x3.5"
Walter Scott
On the 4th of April, 2015, in North Charleston South Carolina, Walter Scott was pulled over by Officer Michael Slager for a broken third brake light. He pulled into an auto part store and explained he was there in order to fix the light. After speaking with Scott, Slager returned to his patrol car. Scott exited his vehicle and ran. Slager pursued Scott on foot until they eventually became engaged in a physical altercation. Slager drew his taser and fired it at Scott. In response Scott fled. Slager drew his handgun and aimed at the back of Scott and fired 8 shots, hitting Scott 5 times. One of the bullets struck Scott’s Heart and Lungs, fatally wounding him.
Slagers report falsely claimed Walter had stolen his taser. Walter was 6m away when Slager fired his gun. Video evidence recorded by witness Feidin Santana was inconsistent with Slager’s Report.
Slager was eventually charged with murder in the second degree and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Artist: Sayan Nag
Available in 2.5"x3.5"