Boston-area students and activists picketed Cambridge City Hall from Monday to Friday in protest of the fatal shooting of 20-year-old Sayed Faisal by a Cambridge Police Department officer, marking the latest demonstration in a monthslong campaign.
Faisal, a Bangladeshi American student at the University of Massachusetts Boston, was killed by police on Jan. 4. The shooting occurred after the Cambridge Police Department responded to a 911 call reporting that a man had jumped through a window and was harming himself, according to a CPD press release. After a foot chase through Cambridgeport, Faisal allegedly moved toward police wielding a knife, and when a sponge round failed to stop him, an officer fatally shot him.
Faisal\u2019s killing by police sparked months of protest against alleged brutality in Cambridge\u2019s police and has renewed calls for alternative to policing, transparency, and police reform.
The weeklong picket included an iftar \u2014 a traditional meal when Muslims break their fast after sunset during Ramadan \u2014 on Monday, a mural session on Wednesday, an open mic event on Thursday, and several rallies.
Party for Socialism and Liberation organizer and MIT alumnus Husayn R. Karimi said in a Monday interview that it was important to hold an iftar because of Faisal\u2019s family\u2019s Muslim identity.
\u201cFaisal\u2019s family and many community members \u2014 many people in the Bangladeshi community \u2014 are Muslim, practice Islam, and observe Ramadan,\u201d Karimi said. \u201cMany of the organizers are Muslim too.\u201d
Karimi, who emceed the Monday protest, said the decision to picket City Hall drew inspiration from historic social movements.
\u201cPickets have a very important legacy in the labor movement and the civil rights movement as a demonstration of being fed up,\u201d Karimi said. \u201cWe wanted to picket to draw more attention to the issue and do it for a prolonged period of time to show our strength that we\u2019re out here for the long haul.\u201d
On Monday, protesters marched in an oval along the sidewalk facing City Hall, waving signs and shouting chants of \u201cIf we don\u2019t get no justice, then they don\u2019t get no peace!\u201d and \u201cCan\u2019t stop, won\u2019t stop! Jail those killer cops!\u201d One demonstrator pounded on a drum to the rhythm of the chants as another played a cymbal and danced.
Protesters reiterated demands for City Manager Yi-An Huang \u201905 and other officials to name, fire, and prosecute the officers involved in Faisal\u2019s killing, as well as to release the full unredacted police report. Huang has maintained that the names of the officers and the police report will be released following the completion of the Middlesex District Attorney\u2019s investigation.
The \u201cJustice for Faisal\u201d movement comprises students from more than seven Boston-area universities and members of Safe Schools Somerville, the Bangladeshi Association of New England, and the Party for Socialism and Liberation, in addition to other residents and activists.
At the Monday rally, Party for Socialism and Liberation organizer and MIT senior Susanna Chen criticized Huang for his handling of a recent meeting between activists and city officials.
\u201cDuring the meeting, it became immediately clear that the City Manager Huang did not see us as constituents he needed to answer to,\u201d Chen told protesters. \u201cWe didn\u2019t anticipate the extent to which the City Manager chose to disrespect us and this movement.\u201d
In an emailed statement to The Crimson, Huang wrote that he does not support firing and prosecuting any officers before the conclusion of the district attorney\u2019s investigation.
\u201cLast month, I met with four Boston PSL organizers and 13 student organizers and had a two-hour conversation. I appreciate their passion and dedication,\u201d Huang wrote. \u201cWe must wait for the inquest to conclude and I am committed to taking action if wrongdoing is found.\u201d
Huang also wrote that Cambridge \u201cis not waiting to do the work of responding to this tragedy.\u201d
In the months following Faisal\u2019s killing, Huang and other officials have pledged reforms, including equipping CPD officers with body cameras and increasing funding for non-police public safety alternatives. CPD has also hired the Police Executive Research Forum \u2014 a third-party police think tank \u2014 to conduct an external independent review of the department.
Some protesters have taken issue with the think tank\u2019s review \u2014 including at Monday\u2019s rally \u2014 citing the organization\u2019s police-affiliated leadership.
\u201cThe president, the vice president, the treasurer, and the secretary of PERF are all cops,\u201d PSL organizer Matthew Kennedy said Monday.
In a March press release, the city announced that the review will be conducted by both law enforcement professionals and researchers outside of policing.
Karimi called the weeklong picket \u201cextremely energizing\u201d and said participating was like \u201ca release of frustration, rightful lifelong indignation.\u201d
\u201cIt cuts through a lot of the hopelessness that in this case the city wants us to feel \u2014 that we can\u2019t do anything,\u201d Karimi said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n