Brooklyn, NY, August 21 — It has been thirteen months since Kyam Livingston died in a Brooklyn Central Booking holding cell. Kyam’s mother, sister and other family members along with their supporters have vowed that Kyam’s death will not have been in vain. They vow to fight to change the conditions in Central Booking.
Family members had hoped to see politicians support the struggle and the newly elected Brooklyn District Attorney bring charges against those responsible for Kyam’s death. But they now view politicians as liars who will say anything to get elected and then do nothing for workers once in office.
PL’ers in this struggle are fighting to make clear that the politicians are only puppets doing the bidding for the capitalist ruling class of big bankers and business owners.
Today’s rally on Flatbush and Church started with a bang. As we assembled, the police started putting together metal fencing to pen in our demonstration. Kyam’s mom responded quickly, saying “my daughter died in a pen, you won’t pen me in!” She pushed aside the fences that blocked access to workers exiting the nearby subway station.
As a crowd grew, chants rang out, “We want justice for Kyam Livingston, killed in a Brooklyn cell!” Leaflets and over 200 copies of CHALLENGE were distributed. Soon, the fences were moved and we could easily reach the large numbers of mainly black workers who stopped on their way home to hear our speeches and take literature being distributed.
Notably, this was the first time that a significant number of young white workers stopped to take leaflets and CHALLENGE. They are no doubt angered by recent racist cop murders. This is a step in building multiracial unity.
Members of the Justice for Kyam Livingston Committee spoke linking Kyam’s death and the murders of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. as well as Eric Garner, Kimani Gray, and Shantel Davis here in NYC. Kyam’s mother explained that our struggle has resulted in the release of the video tapes (first said not to exist) and the names of the jailers in Central Bookings who did not respond to Kyam’s pleas for medical help.
A retired unionist spoke about raising support for this and other anti-racist struggles in unions, churches, tenant associations and other community groups as a way of building this struggle and making sure that the monthly demonstrations grow. He urged those present to also attend the rally in Staten Island linking the struggle against police murders in Ferguson, and New York.
A teacher speaking for the Progressive Labor Party explained that this is not an issue of a few bad cops but rather a fight against the capitalist system whose police forces are used to terrorize the working class in general, especially black and Latin workers. She made it clear that racist police murders would continue as long as capitalists ruled us.
The list of names of those murdered by the racist police is already much too long. A system that survives based on racism and racist terror needs to be overthrown by communist revolution!