East Lansing Students March, Rally to Protest Racial Injustice

Yesterday, a group of about 150 East Lansing High School students rallied after school to protest racial injustice in the wake of grand jury acquittals in the Michael Brown and Eric Garner cases. In a spirited but peaceful procession, the students and supporters marched from the ELHS campus to Abbot Road chanting slogans such as "I can't breathe," "No Justice, No Peace," "Hands Up, Don't Shoot," and "Black Lives Matter."

The students then rallied on Abbot, many holding up hand-lettered signs, before marching back to the High School’s auditorium via Library Lane. As the group stood in a line on Abbot, a number of passing vehicles honked to show support.

The protest was organized by members of the ELHS Black Student Union, a multicultural group advised by East Lansing resident and ELHS parent Darryl Pettway. According to Pettway, the Ferguson decision was the catalyst for Monday’s march. “Everyone was concerned about the decision, on both sides, students were disturbed and wanted to have the discussion which led to the decision to march.” Pettway added that the protest was intended “to show that we are in sync with people in the rest of the country who feel that the atrocities much stop.”

Pettway has a long history of working for political change, including service on the NAACP Young Adult Committee. While working with BSU members to plan Monday’s protest, he instructed them to follow the rules outlined by ELHS administration and by the school’s safety officer. “I want them to learn that we do our best to obey rules” he said.

Asked if he had spoken with students about dealing with negative attention during the march and rally, he explained that “one thing I teach my children is that the only person you can control is yourself, and everyone has a right to their opinion. If people come and are oppositional, that is their right.”

After the march, protesters gathered in the ELHS Auditorium and listened to several student speakers from groups including BSU, Students for Social Justice, and The Gay Straight Alliance. Guest Speaker Rashid Timmons from MSU’s Black Student Alliance complimented the students on their coalition building with other groups, and voiced solidarity with the ELHS student activists.

Monday’s demonstration, according to Darryl Pettway, was not an end but a beginning to dialogue about racial injustice in this country. “Children of color are worried in case they were walking home from 7-11 with a hoodie on. That deserves training, better police training, a discussion in the community, and no kid should feel inferior.”

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