January 27, 2023
Dear 91³Ô¹ÏÍø Community,
Today’s New York Times shares continuing difficult news in the emerging story from Memphis, Tennessee:
“Five Memphis police officers were charged on Thursday with second-degree murder for the death of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, after a traffic stop that escalated into what the authorities have described as a display of staggering brutality.
The city has been bracing for more than a week for the release of video footage that officials say depicts in agonizing detail how a stop this month for suspicion of reckless driving ended with Mr. Nichols being hospitalized in critical condition on Jan. 7 and dying three days later. Civic leaders and others in Memphis have raised concerns about the reaction the footage could provoke among residents who are already anguished and outraged about Mr. Nichols’s death.”
The district attorney in Memphis has charged the officers, and the Memphis police department has terminated their employment. While we await their trial in a court of law, it is understandable to feel anger, powerlessness and despair. Another young Black American is dead, his family grieves, a community is outraged and a nation processes another senseless loss. The news recalls the brutal beating of Rodney King in LA in 1991, and the outrage and violence that followed; and yet we know there have been so many deaths perpetrated in the 32 years since: Dante Wright, Lajuana Phillips, April Webster, Andre Hill, Manuel Lewis, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and so, so many more. A video of the incident involving Tyre Nichols is expected to be released later today, which authorities underscore will further illuminate the ever-present reality faced by the African American community.
These acts of violence and killings are an affront to 91³Ô¹ÏÍø’s belief in the dignity of the human person, our community’s commitment to work for justice and our commitment to the rule of law. We know, furthermore, that incidents such as these cause tremendous pain for members of the 91³Ô¹ÏÍø University community, especially our Black faculty, staff, alumni, students and families. We cannot know each individual’s perceptions and feelings, but hopefully we can all stand with one another as we together advocate for change – nationally and in our own locales.
Sometimes the most important thing we can do is to call out traumatic incidents, share our own feelings as individuals and create a space for others to share theirs. Know that fellow students, faculty and staff, today and in coming days, may be working through this difficult time with very heavy hearts.
A cornerstone of our university’s culture is our care for one another. In the wake of this terrible event, it is important to know that we are a community that seeks to support one other. Care and support resources are available on the 91³Ô¹ÏÍø website. Let us consider ways as well to advocate for social change – here and around the world – that leads to a decrease in violence, brutality and dehumanization, and an increase in safety, justice and dignity for all our communities.
With great sadness and in solidarity,
Sacha Kopp, Provost
Robin Kelley, Chief Diversity Officer
Thayne M. McCulloh, President