Nearly 70 people protested the killing of 16-year old Kimani Gray at the 67th Precint in East Flatbush last night, after he was shot dead two days ago by an undercover cop.
Gray was shot 11 times by an undercover, plainclothes officer after he allegedly pointed a gun at cops and "adjusted his waistband," according to police officials, but witnesses at the scene claim the young boy ran from cops and had no weapon.
Contradicting allegations continued to arise last night, at the 67th Precinct, in which cops alleged that the crowd gathered outside in support of the slain young man threw "rocks and bottles" at the police station. Protestors disagree with the allegations, stating the gathering was peaceful in support of Gray.
The troubled young man also had four previous arrests, including grand larceny, inciting a riot, and possession of stolen property.
The scene echoes the frustration felt by the community and civil rights activist after 23-year old Sean Bell was gunned down in Jamaica, Queens by officers, after celebrating a pre-wedding outing at a neighborhood strip club with friends and family. In this case, undercover and plainclothes officers hailed 50 bullets at a car driven by Bell and his friends.
Council member, Jumaane Williams, a co-chair of the City Council's Task Force to Combat Gun Violence, issued a statement in regards to the protests last night stating, "Tonight, we saw an explosion of anger from the youth in my community. We have talked about the corrosive relationship between our community and the NYPD, but still the Mayor and the Commissioner have failed to address the root causes of this tension."
The violence comes amidst angst by community advocates and neighborhoods on "Stop and Frisk" tactics implemented by Commissioner Ray Kelly and the NYPD, that unfairly target black and Latino youth in urban areas.
Williams continues urging angry and fed-up residents of Brooklyn areas that allege they are being "targeted" by police that "We must channel it (anger) constructively and send a clear message to City Hall and One Police Plaza that change must come. Without it, I fear this will be a long and bloody summer ahead. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 'a riot is the language of the unheard.'"
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