Last Sunday’s protest on Michigan Road where traffic was at a standstill for 45 minutes wasn’t Dr. David Hampton’s first stand against injustice.
Several years ago, before he was senior pastor of Light of the World Christian Church, Hampton was fed up with the violence taking place on the Eastside of Indianapolis. He organized a large prayer rally that took place on 46th and Arlington Avenue after a Sunday service. While pastor of Bethany Baptist Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., Hampton was arrested alongside Rev. Al Sharpton for speaking out against the shooting death of Sean Bell by white police officers.
“I’ve been speaking out against social injustice for a long time,” he said.
As news spread that Hampton and members of Light of the World were arrested for blocking traffic while protesting that George Zimmerman had not been arrested or charged for killing 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida, many may have wondered why? How is getting arrested in Indianapolis going to change the outcome in Florida?
There were three basic messages Hampton says he was trying to get across on a national, state and local level. The national message was Martin. The state message was to shed light on Indiana’s ‘Stand Your Ground’ law and the local message was to highlight the city’s Black on Black violence.
“We were willing to be arrested to prove the point that if our police department would arrest us for obstructing traffic, then how ridiculous is it that George Zimmerman had not been arrested,” Hampton said. “Everybody is looking at Indianapolis because we set the tone for the general message that we will not continue to tolerate the dehumanization and the devalued life of our young, Black men. Sometimes, just meeting and praying is not enough.”
In the weeks since Martin was killed, thousands of protesters have marched throughout the country trying to send a similar message of frustration that Zimmerman has not been arrested coupled with the exasperation of gun violence.
Has the protesting worked? Political analyst Roland Martin says yes.
“There would be no special prosecutor had thousands across the nation not mobilized, organized and took to the streets to demand justice for Trayvon,” he said. “Would a grand jury be convened on April 10? Not a chance. Would the 911 tapes be released showing admitted trigger man George Zimmerman calling Trayvon suspicious, and owning up to following him? No. Would the Florida Legislature be reviewing – and discussing changing or abandoning – the controversial ‘Stand Your Ground’ law, which is at the heart of this case? No.”
Martin added that he didn’t believe the U.S. Department of Justice or the Sanford Police Department would have launched an investigation into the case or that Sanford’s Police Chief Bill Lee would have stepped down if there had not been anger that led to protesters marching.
“The main demand in the Trayvon Martin case from day one was for Zimmerman to be arrested and for justice to be served,” he said. “It was about holding a legal system accountable that clearly gave more credence to a 28-year-old gunman than the 17-year-old, unarmed man who was gunned down.”
What happens if Zimmerman is arrested? Will African-Americans be satisfied? Should African-Americans be satisfied?
Or in Indianapolis; what happens if Black on Black violence begins to decline? Will Hampton no longer feel the need to protest? Will the Ten Point Coalition, a group of Black ministers that works with police to stop violence find another mission? When the outcry dissipates, what happens next?
Rev. Michael Jones, pastor of Progressive Missionary Baptist Church is not a member of the Ten Point Coalition but believes the goals of the group are needed. However, he says walking the city streets is not enough. Jones, who is also vice president of the National Action Network, Indiana Chapter has organized a community dialogue to take place at the church April 19. The dialogue will address racial profiling, the criminal justice system, Black on Black violence and the local ‘Stand Your Ground’ law. The eight-week conversation will include community leaders, politicians, police officers, judges and local ministers.
“The goal isn’t just to have venting sessions. It’s also about getting informed because some people don’t know what their rights are and how to work within the law even if we have to disobey it,” said Jones. “We also want to have some strategies come out of the sessions to affect policy. If you can’t affect public policy and all you have is programs, it’s hard to get anywhere.”
Homer Smith, political director of the Indianapolis NAACP branch, agrees.
There are “a lot of the laws we don’t know much about until we’re getting punished,” he said. “We have to be educated about public policy and how the laws affect us.”
While the NAACP doesn’t endorse political candidates, Smith says participating in elections is another way to make a difference and affect change.
“You have to make change at the legislative level,” he said. “If you want change you have be informed and you have to vote.”
