Rallies in support of Z'Kye Husain continue
Marchers at the People’s Organization For Progress (P.O.P) rally in support of Z’Kye Husain, March 5, 2022. (Josie Gonsalves for Public Square Amplified)
BRIDGEWATER, NJ—Dozens braved the March chill on Saturday morning for the second rally organized by the Peoples Organization for Progress in support of 14-year-old Z'Kye Husain. Protesters marched from the Bridgewater police station to the Bridgewater Commons Mall in Somerset County to denounce the arrest of Husain when police broke up a fight between Husain and another teen at the mall in February.
Both teens are people of color. Husain, who police took to the ground and handcuffed, is Black. The other teen who police pulled off of Husain and asked to sit nearby is not. The Bridgewater Mall has since banned both teens for three years, and the police officers who arrived at the scene have been placed on desk duty. The incident has drawn widespread attention as video footage of the arrest went viral. And Z'Kye Husain's family has retained civil rights lawyer Benjamin Crump.
"I don't think that was right, what happened," said 8-year-old Kaleb Porter. "And I didn't think what the police did was also right." Among the youngest of the protesters, Porter took his turn at the mic to denounce the police officers' conduct. He also argued that if arrests were made, both boys should have been arrested, not just Z'Kye Husain. Marching that day was an early lesson in civics for the young boy whose parents take every opportunity to teach him about the hard truths of racial discrimination and his duty and speak out against it.
Video compliments of Lisa Davis, community activist with the Black is Back Coalition forSocial Justice,Peace and Reparations.
"We try not to shield him from what's going on in the world, and at that moment in that march, when they asked if anyone else had anything they wanted to say, Kaleb raised his hand and said his piece," said his mother, Shahieda DaSilva Porter of South Plainfield. "We don't live in Bridgewater, but we frequent the mall. And seeing a young African American boy being treated that way...that could be my son one day."
Led by the Newark-based People's Organization for Progress, supporters called for justice, police accountability, and the firing of the two officers who forcefully retrained the young man.
"He didn't resist, and you just both went for him. They both should lose their jobs, and at minimum, we should know their names. Everyone knows that little boy's name, and we know nothing about these officers," said DaSilva Porter.
The Somerset County Prosecutor's Office has opened an investigation on the matter. Meanwhile, in February, the Attorney General's Office released an online "Major Discipline Reporting" document that lists disciplinary actions against nearly 400 officers in 2021. The report defines "Major discipline" as "terminations, reductions in rank, or suspension of more than five days."
Only one entry appears for the Bridgewater Township Police: an officer who received a 180-day suspension for "lack of truthfulness" for lying to supervisors and during an Internal Affairs Investigation. Still, the report only lists actions against officers once they are final. For example, those caught up in a drawn-out appeals process are not listed.
Although Bridgewater police submitted just one instance of major disciplinary action within its ranks last year, residents complain of a history of racial profiling by local police with no recourse for those harmed.
In another effort to promote police accountability and justice in public service, the state Assembly passed two bills last week that would require New Jersey police officers and state lawmakers to take cultural diversity and implicit bias trainings. From here, the bills go on to a lot in the state Senate. Community members like DaSilva Porter remain skeptical about the effectiveness of such measures.
"We are in 2022, and we just can't sweep this under the rug with some diversity training, said DaSilva Porter. "But the fact that such a law hasn't been passed yet is ridiculous! Cultural and diversity training being a mandate for police officers—will it help? Yes. Will it solve all the problems? No. There's' something wrong with the system. Fix it."
Organizers have promised more rallies in support of Z'Kye Husain. As P.O.P chairman Lawrence Hamm led the recent march on Bridgewater Mall, he called the crowd to keep their power by not spending in a place that disrespected them.
"Maybe we shouldn't spend our money here," he said. "Maybe we should tell people to boycott this place... they're ready to take your money, but they're not going to give you dignity."
And he reminded the crowd that, as evidenced by the plight of Z'Kye and his family, the fight for civil rights and equality is must continue.