Eight bullets.
That’s how many Stephon Clark’s body was found with in his backyard in Sacramento, California, according to the New York Times.
Outrage once again echoed across the country, with the Black Lives Matter movement and NBA players sounding off, calling the death of Clark an extreme injustice.
The Black Student Union (BSU) on the University of Idaho campus brought that conversation to Moscow during their protest through the UI campus and downtown Friday afternoon.
The students started outside the UI Commons before making a stop on the SprinTurf outside the Kibbie Dome.
“We stopped at the Kibbie Dome because a majority of athletes there are African Americans, so we wanted to get their attention and let them know we’re still fighting for them. We understand they can’t be there, because they have practice and all that great stuff, so we just wanted to let them know that we’re there for them,” said Shavaine Byass, vice president of BSU.
Byass said the march was in support of people of color, the disabled and those in poverty.
“Last year over 300 black people were killed by police officers, wrongly did, not only police officers but also the people in their community. For people with disabilities, I read a case a few years ago where this man here in Idaho actually abused a person of color — he was black — on the football team, so that’s another reason we’re marching and for people in poverty. No one ever takes into consideration what the little guy wants,” Byass said.
George Ngalamulume, president of BSU, said the recent marches surround gun violence have not overshadowed their own reasons to march.
“In a way, I don’t think it overshadowed. It’s just we’re being overlooked due to the color of our skin, so we’re not really getting the attention that we really need to be to be vocal about it,” Ngalamulume said.
Arely Ayala, a senior at UI, said she marched because, as a minority, it’s important to acknowledge all the struggles people face.
“It is also important to be inclusive of other communities and know that these issues are prevalent here in Moscow and do affect the Moscow population and the student body,” Ayala said.
Brain Dulan, a Moscow community member, brought the students water and granola bars because he said he wanted to show support and thought it was the least he could do.
“I just wish people would go out more and join protest around the country and speak to people of different ethnicities instead of just sitting at home and watching something that gives you one point of view throughout life,” Ngalamulume said.
Kali Nelson can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @kalinelson6