Sheneen McClain, center, mother of Elijah McClain, speaks during a press conference in front of the Aurora Municipal Center on Oct. 1, 2019. (Photo: Andy Cross/MediaNewsGroup/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
Jun 27, 2020
Demonstrators in Aurora, Colorado Saturday are calling for justice for Elijah McClain, a 23-year-old Black man who died after being attacked by city police officers in August 2019, and rejecting the reassignment of the officers involved and a promised investigation into the death as insufficient.
"This shouldn't be a moment," protester Franklin Williams told the Denver Post. "This should be a movement."
\u201cThere\u2019s going to be a big rally for Elijah McClain later today in Aurora. To understand how we got this point, I hope you\u2019ll take a few minutes to hear from Elijah\u2019s mother, Sheneen. https://t.co/XZxeNi7Kg2\u201d— Alex Burness (@Alex Burness) 1593281526
The details of McClain's death are harrowing. The young man, an introverted violinist with anemia--necessitating wearing a mask when the temperature dropped--was stopped by police the night of August 24, 2019 for no discernible reason.
Officers manhandled McClain, putting him into a chokehold, threatened him, and arrested him. EMTs later injected McClain with 500mg of ketamine. McClain suffered a heart attack and was brain dead three days later; he was taken off of life support on August 30, 2019.
McClain's mother Sheneen told the Denver Post in an interview published Saturday that while she appreciated the movement for her son, she was disappointed it hadn't come earlier. Sheneen also said she was upset that it took the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers to provoke Saturday's protests.
"The selective protesting, the selective accountability, is terrible in America," she said. "So many times we don't do what's right until other people do it first."
\u201cChants of \u201csay his name Elijah McClain\u201d directed at officers standing behind barricades\u201d— Sam Tabachnik (@Sam Tabachnik) 1593282494
Renewed attention to the case led Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, to order (pdf) on June 25 a new investigation into the killing.
"Elijah McClain should be alive today, and we owe it to his family to take this step and elevate the pursuit of justice in his name to a statewide concern," Polis said in a statement announcing the investigation.
\u201chttps://t.co/Oc0RDoCmcO\u201d— Sam Tabachnik (@Sam Tabachnik) 1593285037
The officers' treatment of Elijah McClain was contrasted with the department's arrest of white mass shooter James Holmes, who was taken into custody without incident after killing 12 people and wounding 70 at the premiere of the movie The Dark Knight Rises in 2012.
\u201csame police department\u201d— FULLER GO EASY ON THE PEPSI (@FULLER GO EASY ON THE PEPSI) 1593101943
The reassignment of the three officers who arrested McClain, reported Friday, was not seen as enough by critics of the police and governmental responses to the death.
"Not good enough," tweeted writer Adrienne Law. "We must keep the pressure. Elijah McClain and his family deserve justice."
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Demonstrators in Aurora, Colorado Saturday are calling for justice for Elijah McClain, a 23-year-old Black man who died after being attacked by city police officers in August 2019, and rejecting the reassignment of the officers involved and a promised investigation into the death as insufficient.
"This shouldn't be a moment," protester Franklin Williams told the Denver Post. "This should be a movement."
\u201cThere\u2019s going to be a big rally for Elijah McClain later today in Aurora. To understand how we got this point, I hope you\u2019ll take a few minutes to hear from Elijah\u2019s mother, Sheneen. https://t.co/XZxeNi7Kg2\u201d— Alex Burness (@Alex Burness) 1593281526
The details of McClain's death are harrowing. The young man, an introverted violinist with anemia--necessitating wearing a mask when the temperature dropped--was stopped by police the night of August 24, 2019 for no discernible reason.
Officers manhandled McClain, putting him into a chokehold, threatened him, and arrested him. EMTs later injected McClain with 500mg of ketamine. McClain suffered a heart attack and was brain dead three days later; he was taken off of life support on August 30, 2019.
McClain's mother Sheneen told the Denver Post in an interview published Saturday that while she appreciated the movement for her son, she was disappointed it hadn't come earlier. Sheneen also said she was upset that it took the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers to provoke Saturday's protests.
"The selective protesting, the selective accountability, is terrible in America," she said. "So many times we don't do what's right until other people do it first."
\u201cChants of \u201csay his name Elijah McClain\u201d directed at officers standing behind barricades\u201d— Sam Tabachnik (@Sam Tabachnik) 1593282494
Renewed attention to the case led Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, to order (pdf) on June 25 a new investigation into the killing.
"Elijah McClain should be alive today, and we owe it to his family to take this step and elevate the pursuit of justice in his name to a statewide concern," Polis said in a statement announcing the investigation.
\u201chttps://t.co/Oc0RDoCmcO\u201d— Sam Tabachnik (@Sam Tabachnik) 1593285037
The officers' treatment of Elijah McClain was contrasted with the department's arrest of white mass shooter James Holmes, who was taken into custody without incident after killing 12 people and wounding 70 at the premiere of the movie The Dark Knight Rises in 2012.
\u201csame police department\u201d— FULLER GO EASY ON THE PEPSI (@FULLER GO EASY ON THE PEPSI) 1593101943
The reassignment of the three officers who arrested McClain, reported Friday, was not seen as enough by critics of the police and governmental responses to the death.
"Not good enough," tweeted writer Adrienne Law. "We must keep the pressure. Elijah McClain and his family deserve justice."
Demonstrators in Aurora, Colorado Saturday are calling for justice for Elijah McClain, a 23-year-old Black man who died after being attacked by city police officers in August 2019, and rejecting the reassignment of the officers involved and a promised investigation into the death as insufficient.
"This shouldn't be a moment," protester Franklin Williams told the Denver Post. "This should be a movement."
\u201cThere\u2019s going to be a big rally for Elijah McClain later today in Aurora. To understand how we got this point, I hope you\u2019ll take a few minutes to hear from Elijah\u2019s mother, Sheneen. https://t.co/XZxeNi7Kg2\u201d— Alex Burness (@Alex Burness) 1593281526
The details of McClain's death are harrowing. The young man, an introverted violinist with anemia--necessitating wearing a mask when the temperature dropped--was stopped by police the night of August 24, 2019 for no discernible reason.
Officers manhandled McClain, putting him into a chokehold, threatened him, and arrested him. EMTs later injected McClain with 500mg of ketamine. McClain suffered a heart attack and was brain dead three days later; he was taken off of life support on August 30, 2019.
McClain's mother Sheneen told the Denver Post in an interview published Saturday that while she appreciated the movement for her son, she was disappointed it hadn't come earlier. Sheneen also said she was upset that it took the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers to provoke Saturday's protests.
"The selective protesting, the selective accountability, is terrible in America," she said. "So many times we don't do what's right until other people do it first."
\u201cChants of \u201csay his name Elijah McClain\u201d directed at officers standing behind barricades\u201d— Sam Tabachnik (@Sam Tabachnik) 1593282494
Renewed attention to the case led Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, to order (pdf) on June 25 a new investigation into the killing.
"Elijah McClain should be alive today, and we owe it to his family to take this step and elevate the pursuit of justice in his name to a statewide concern," Polis said in a statement announcing the investigation.
\u201chttps://t.co/Oc0RDoCmcO\u201d— Sam Tabachnik (@Sam Tabachnik) 1593285037
The officers' treatment of Elijah McClain was contrasted with the department's arrest of white mass shooter James Holmes, who was taken into custody without incident after killing 12 people and wounding 70 at the premiere of the movie The Dark Knight Rises in 2012.
\u201csame police department\u201d— FULLER GO EASY ON THE PEPSI (@FULLER GO EASY ON THE PEPSI) 1593101943
The reassignment of the three officers who arrested McClain, reported Friday, was not seen as enough by critics of the police and governmental responses to the death.
"Not good enough," tweeted writer Adrienne Law. "We must keep the pressure. Elijah McClain and his family deserve justice."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.