More than 100 people gathered outside the Unitarian Society of Germantown Church on Lincoln Drive last Wednesday to mark the first anniversary of the police killing of Walter Wallace, Jr and to call for reforms.
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More than 100 people gathered outside the Unitarian Society of Germantown Church on Lincoln Drive last Wednesday to mark the first anniversary of the police killing of Walter Wallace, Jr and to call for reforms.
"Remembering Walter Wallace, Jr.: A Vigil and A Call to Act" was presented by the POWER Interfaith Live Free Campaign and the "Standing in Solidarity for Racial Justice" Vigil at the Unitarian church.
Walter Wallace, Jr. was a 27-year-old Black man fatally shot by police in West Philadelphia on October 26, 2020, after family members called 911 for help as he experienced a mental health crisis. The responding police officers fired a hail of 14 bullets within one minute after they arrived on the scene, killing Mr. Wallace in front of his mother, other relatives and neighbors. No health care personnel had been dispatched.
“Unfortunately in our city when a person is facing a mental health crisis the family doesn’t have a choice except to call 911, for the most part,” said Rev. Mark Tyler, Co-Director of POWER Live Free and senior pastor at Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church. "An armed response should not be the first response,” he added.
The vigil took place one day after the city of Philadelphia announced that it would provide tasers and training to all police officers, part of a settlement with the Wallace family. POWER applauds the move, but Tyler said "that will not give us the public safety that we want," and called for a "radical new vision and reallocation of dollars." This includes a state-of-the art 911 system and a civilian response model with trained mental health professionals.
The two elected officials in attendance, Philadelphia City Council member-at-large Derek Green and PA State Rep. Chris Rabb, urged the diverse crowd - a "community of struggle" that Rabb said he was proud to represent -- to continue the fight for justice.
Other speakers included Rev. Kent Matthies, senior minister at the Unitarian Society of Germantown, Elder Melanie DuBose, Co-Director of POWER Live Free and pastor at Evangel Chapel in North Philadelphia, and Steve Strahs, a member of the POWER Real Public Safety Team.
Rabbi Linda Holtzman, Rabbinic leader at Tikkun Olam Chavurah, read the Mourner’s Kaddish, the Jewish prayer for the dead, while West African singer and Mt Airy resident Mariama O'Brien offered drumming and song.
The "Standing in Solidarity for Racial Justice" Vigil continues every Tuesday and Friday at 5pm on Lincoln Drive. Info at solidarity@usguu.org.
