GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Before dozens of people marched down Fuller Avenue on Saturday afternoon, Israel Siku passed out black t-shirts that had “We will never forget what you have done” printed on the front in white block letters and “We will never forget Patrick Lyoya” on the back.
Then, around 3 p.m., the crowd took to the streets, wearing the shirts and shouting “Justice for Patrick.”
“I’m not going to say that I’m happy,” said Swahili interpreter Israel Siku, translating on behalf of Peter Lyoya, Patrick’s father. “It’s joy. But it’s the love among us Black people, African Americans that we are standing up and fighting for justice for Patrick.”
🚨HAPPENING NOW: Justice For Patrick rally and march.
— Lauren Edwards (@LaurenEdwardsTV) May 27, 2023
Patrick Lyoya was fatally shot April 2022 during a traffic stop.
Ex GRPD Officer Schurr was charged with second degree murder. // @FOX17 pic.twitter.com/EsykFwyO7P
On April 4, 2022, Patrick Lyoya, who was 26-years-old and from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, was shot and killed during a traffic stop near the intersection of Nelson and Griggs.
“Yes, it’s true that Patrick has been buried,” Siku said for Peter. “We’re still crying. We’re still mourning. We’re not going to forget. And, I know everybody who saw how Patrick was killed he will never forget.”
Patrick’s killing sparked local and statewide protests, and gained national attention.
Civil Rights leader Rev. Al Sharpton did the eulogy at his funeral, and attorney Ben Crump has taken on the family's case alongside attorney Ven Johnson.
Since the fatal shooting, former GRPD officer Christopher Schurr has been charged with second-degree murder.
Trial is scheduled to begin in late October but the family said they’re tired of waiting.
“It has been a year and nothing has happened,” Siku said for Peter. “They keep postponing. They keep pushing it. And Patrick died, it’s not like an injustice death. It’s a death that you can see how he was killed.”
So, they and former commissioner Robert Womack, organized Saturday’s rally and march to keep Patrick’s name and memory alive.
“One thing I just want, I want justice,” Peter said. “I want justice for my son. I want justice for Patrick. So we can have that inner-peace.”
