Will you receive justice, Oscar Grant?

Oakland is on the edge of its seat waiting to see what the jury decides for Officer Mehserle, the cop who shot and killed Oscar Grant as he lay face down on at the Fruitvale BART platform a couple New Years Eves ago. There's a call for assembly circulating that asks for people to gather at 14th and Broadway at 6PM in Downtown, Oakland on the evening the verdict is to be read, which may possibly happen as soon as tomorrow. There is much concern that such an assembly could lead to more rioting instigated by so-called by "outside agitators" and more private property destruction. So, the Oakland PD is out in full force, freshly trained and ready to fuck some people up or at least intimidate them into passivity, and many storefronts downtown (even as far north as Grocery Outlet on Broaday, near 29th) have boarded up their window glass anticipating the worst. But no matter what the verdict; 2nd degree murder, manslaughter (voluntary or involuntary), or acquittal, it's not going to restore anbodys faith in the law or its enforcers. It certainly won't undo the trauma of witnessing a very public execution by a white cop of a prone black man, and it's not going to bring that black man (or any "disposable" person killed at the hands of a cop) back to life. R.I.P. Oscar Grant III.










A recent Colorlines article by Juliann Hing that breaks down the potential outcomes of the case.