Hundreds March Through The Mission In Protest Of Police Killings Of Daunte Wright And Roger Allen

San Francisco CA

16 April, 2021

4:20 PM

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By Julian Mark, Mission Local April 15, 2021 Around 200 demonstrators gathered at Mission High School on Thursday evening and marched to Mission Police Station, shouting "fuck the police" and chanting the names of Daunte Wright and Roger Allen — two unarmed Black men killed by police in recent days. Wright was a 20-year-old unarmed Black man who was shot by a Minnesota police officer on Sunday during a traffic stop. Allen was a 44-year-old Black man shot by an unidentified Daly City police officer, who purportedly mistook a realistic pellet gun in Allen's possession for a firearm. Although the men were killed 2,000 miles apart, their images sat side-by-side on the steps of Mission High School on Thursday on a makeshift altar where protesters lit candles and set down flowers. "We can't get distracted by reform," said Aditi Joshi, a 26-year-old organizer with the group Defund SFPD Now, in front of a crowd at Mission High. "Abolition is the only path to justice." It was a common refrain: Defunding and ultimately abolishing the police was the only way to stop the police killing of Black men. "I don't think abolition is super radical," said Samantha, 20, standing near the tennis courts at Dolores Park. Protesters gather at Mission High and prepare to march through the Mission. Photo by Julian Mark The demonstration began at around 6:30 p.m. and slowly built up to a crowd of around 200 marchers, many of whom wore black clothing. It began as a largely solemn affair, with a moment of silence and speeches on the high school's front steps. But the protest grew in intensity as demonstrators began marching down 18th Street toward Valencia at around 7:30 p.m., chanting "No justice, no peace — no racist police!" and "Stand up! Fight back!" Marchers turned onto Valencia Street, heading north, and stopped in front of Mission Station, where they were met with police guarding the building in riot gear. As the protesters chanted and sometimes heckled the police, the police largely watched them stoically. Some protesters accused the cops of smirking and rolling their eyes. Marching down 18th Street, chanting "No justice, no peace!" Photo by Julian Mark A key moment came at Mission Station when Talika Fletcher, the 30-year-old younger sister of Allen, the man shot by an unidentified Daly City Police officer last Wednesday, addressed the hundreds gathered in front of the police station — including the cops. "My brother is in the morgue right now," she said through a bullhorn, her body pressed against metal barricades set up at the police station. Allen was reportedly parked on Niantic Avenue between Citrus and Westlake avenues, when police asked him if he needed help with a flat tire. A struggle ensued, and police purportedly mistook a pellet gun in Allen's possession for a real gun and shot Allen in the chest, the San Francisco Examiner reported. "My brother was my heart," Fletcher said, addressing the police officers. "I can't even look at ya'll. I'm terrified of ya'll." "Say my brother's name," she continued. "Roger Allen!" the crowd yelled back. Talika Fletcher, Roger Allen's younger sister, speaks to police through a bullhorn. Photo by Julian Mark It was a sparse crowd compared to the demonstrations in June 2020, when some 15,000 protesters gathered at Mission High School and marched through the city following the killing of George Floyd, who died after Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes. But almost a year later, with the murder trial of Chauvin drawing to a close and a new round of police killings in public view, people who marched on Thursday said momentum for a change should not be lost. "Last year I saw more people than I've ever seen come out and protest against injustice and I want to see people keep that same energy," said Xla, 18, who said she grew up in Bayview. "Just because last year was more publicized doesn't mean it was the first murder to happen at the hands of police — and it's not going to be the last unless we keep … making our voices heard." Protesters burn a "Blue Lives Matter" flag, among the final actions of the evening. Photo by Julian Mark Mission Local covers San Francisco from the vantage point of the Mission, a neighborhood with all of the promise and problems of a major city. You can support Mission Local here.