Breonna Taylor’s mother Tamika Palmer will speak live on a Zoom event hosted by Hudson County Community College later this month, with questions being accepted for the event through February 10th.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
Palmer will take part in HCCC’s Speaker Series event that will stream at 12 noon on Thursday, February 18th, the school announced on Friday.
In keeping with HCCC President’s Advisory Council on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (PACDEI) practices, the college requests that members of the community participate by submitting questions they may have for Palmer by February 10, 2020 to mvitale@hccc.edu with the subject line “Breonna Taylor.”
Breonna Taylor became a catalyst for the Black Lives Matter movement when she was shot
and killed by police in her Louisville, Kentucky home on March 13th, 2020.
The 26-year-old Black, Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) was roused from her sleep when police, suspecting that Taylor’s ex-boyfriend was storing drugs in her home, used a battering ram to execute a search warrant. No contraband was found.
The incident fractured Louisville and led to national protests. Since then, Taylor’s family settled a wrongful death civil suit and the three police officers involved were fired, though no criminal charges were filed.
Furthermore, Louisville passed “Breonna’s Law,” which bans “no knock” warrants that allow police to forcibly enter a residence without warning, and requires body cam use during searches. Many social justice activists are calling for police reforms that address systemic racism on a national level.
Those who wish to access the Speaker Series event featuring Ms. Palmer on February 18, 2021 may do so by registering here.
HCCC Assistant Professor of History, Dorothy Anderson, and HCCC Director of Cultural Affairs, Michelle Vitale, will co-moderate the discussion with Palmer and the event will open
with a performance by Jersey City Poet Laureate Rashad Wright.
Additionally, the event will conclude with a virtual tour of the exhibition, “Azikiwe Mohammed: ‘Tales from Fold Out Chairs,’” and Rashad Wright: ‘in heaven’s Wakanda’,” which has been curated by Ysabel Pinyol Blasi and is being presented in partnership with Monira Foundation in the HCCC Benjamin J. Dineen and Dennis C. Hull Gallery.
