On April 14, two important struggles joined in solidarity in Connecticut. April 14 marked the 18th anniversary of the murder of unarmed 21-year-old Malik Jones at the hands of racist East Haven police. Malik, a Black man, had been chased for a traffic violation, boxed in inside his car and shot multiple times by a violent white officer, Robert Flodquist. Police then dragged Malik out of the vehicle and brutalized him further.
Malik’s mother, community organizer and lawyer Emma Jones, has spent the last 18 years fighting for justice for her son and so many others brutalized and gunned down by the cops. The event was put on by the MALIK organization, ANSWER Ct. and People Against Police Brutality, who together organized a mass rally, march and community meeting in New Haven to commemorate Malik and demand justice.
Around 100 people gathered at the spot Malik was killed, and Emma Jones started the rally off by thanking those who had come and in particular the organizers involved in planning it. “I love you guys,” Jones said. “I love you more than these inadequate English words can express, and I know Malik from his grave, from his heart, is giving everyone a warm hug and one of his sloppy kisses. And so, that’s another victory… We stand here today in solidarity with oppressed people all around the world. Cause your struggle is my struggle, and my struggle is your struggle, and we understand that the only way we win is to unite.”
New Haven was also the most recent stopping point of the Caravana 43, a caravan of families of the 43 Mexican students kidnapped in Ayotzinapa. The caravan joined the event, speaking to the interconnectedness of the struggle against police brutality in the US and the fight against state terror in Mexico. Felipe de la Cruz Sandoval, an organizer with the families of the 43 students, said: “Nothing makes us different. We are all brothers and sisters, and we are here to tell you that when human beings hold each others hands, we can make a difference. We have come here today with our heads held high to tell you the Mexican people are going to start a revolution, and that the moment is now! And just like in Mexico, I tell you that young people here in the US must organise, and must start a revolution. The courage that comes from deep within our souls, that power will tell everybody that we can get together and fight for our ideals!” After the speeches ended, Emma Jones presented each of the members of the Caravana with white roses of solidarity.
The connection between the struggle in Ayotzinapa and the struggle across the United States against police terror is a critical one to make. Just as U.S. imperialism profits from Plan Mérida, the bosses in the U.S. benefit from the murder of poor, mostly Black and Brown people. The Caravana brought a banner that read “Su dolor, su rabia, su lucha. ¡También es la nuestra!” or, “Your pain, your rage, your struggle. It is also ours!”
The protesters then took the streets and marched from the location of Malik’s murder through downtown New Haven. The megaphones traveled around the crowd, with different people from the community and caravan leading chants: “Justice for Malik Jones! Justice for the 43!” “Sin justicia, no hay paz!” “If we don’t get it – shut it down!”
The actions on the 18th anniversary of the murder of Malik Jones come after a strong winter of demonstrations in New Haven have countered police brutality, starting with mass street actions after the non-acquittals of the officers who killed Mike Brown and Eric Garner and more recently in protests and rallies of dozens of people for a 15-year-old girl who was slammed to the ground by a New Haven officer while he was being recorded.
The march ended at the Yale African-American Cultural Center, where the entire company was welcomed by student organizers for a discussion. Student organizer Karléh Wilson, who started a university-wide petition against police harassment of New Haven residents, said: ” As a Yale student it is really easy to ignore all the injustices happening in New Haven. We are surrounded by gates and ivory towers, and these gates make me sick… and because of these gates Yale students fail to recognize the privilege they have in this city. I am not here to denounce that privilege. I am here to use it in the right way.” Afterward, Emma Jones presented the work she has been doing to establish an all-civilian review board for the New Haven Police Department. The Ayotzinapa families spoke again too, urging everyone to take part in actions planned across the state and across the country in support of their children.
The event ended with a video tribute to Malik’s life and a strong message from event organizers, reminding people to stay in the streets. ANSWER organizer Norman Clement said: “Since January, over 400 people have been murdered by police. Every time a person gets killed by police, it’s a reminder to me that what I know is the truth and what they say is not the truth. It’s a reminder to me that we have to keep fighting.”
