Thomas Breen photos
Protesters outside police HQ.
With cries of “Justice for Mubi!” and “Hands Up! Don’t Shoot,” hundreds of protesters marched from City Hall to police headquarters on Union Avenue Tuesday in a collective expression of grief on behalf of the African American 19-year-old who was shot to death by a white state trooper last week after a high-speed highway chase.
That teenage victim was named Mubarak Soulemane, a Blatchley Avenue resident of Ghanaian descent who was a second-year student at Gateway Community College and a graduate of Notre Dame High School in Fairfield, and who suffered from schizophrenia.
Outside City Hall.
A state trooper shot and killed Soulemane on Jan. 15 after a high-speed chase from Norwalk, where Soulemane allegedly carjacked an Uber driver, to West Haven’s Campbell Avenue. State police have said that Soulemane had a knife on him at the time of the chase and shooting.
Inspectors with the state Division of Criminal Justice are currently investigating the fatal shooting. The DCJ announced Tuesday that Middlesex State’s Attorney Michael A. Gailor will be leading the investigation.
Through tears of mourning and outrage, wearing shirts and waving signs depicting “Mubi’s” face and name, over 200 family members, friends, local students, and social justice activists joined Mayor Justin Elicker and a phalanx of TV news cameras for the City Hall rally and march.
“He did not deserve to die in the way that he did,” said Kira Ortoleva (pictured at right), who organized Tuesday’s demonstration.
She said she became close friends with Soulemane while studying at Notre Dame and then at Gateway. She said Soulemane opened up his family’s home and gave her a place to stay and sleep after her parents kicked her out of their house.
“He was the only person there for me when I had nowhere else to go,” she said. “He was not the boy they are painting in the media. He was more than that. He was a brother. And he was an amazing person.”
Soulemane’s mother, cousins, uncles, and brothers all turned out for the rally, though few took turns at the microphone to voice their grief.
“Our goal here is to shed light,” said one cousin, Ayesha Adams (pictured), who said she traveled from White Plains to participate in the demonstration. “Our goal is for all of you to understand that Mubi was a human being. He was a son. He was a brother. And above all, he didn’t deserve to die in the manner in which he did.”
Alhaj Murtala Muhammad (pictured at left), a member of the Bronx-based Yankasa Association of America, said that Soulemane’s death has rocked the Ghanaian community throughout the region.
“This is an unprecedented situation in the annals of our history,” he said. “We as a community of law-abiding citizens, we want justice to be done.”
“It was a massacre of the highest degree,” he continued. “This is uncalled for.”
The state American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) commended the state Division of Criminal Justice for taking over the investigation from the state police in a Tweet earlier this week. “The DCJ has announced that it will take over the investigation into Mubarak Soulemane’s death. State police shouldn’t investigate themselves, so this is a positive change.” Click here for a full statement by the ACLU.
One of Soulemane’s uncles, Tahir Mohammad (pictured at left with Soulemane’s mother), then led the mourners down Church Street, across George Street, and down Union Avenue to the steps of the police headquarters.
“Justice for Mubi!” the crowd shouted along the way. “Justice for Mubi!”
After arriving at 1 Union Ave., Mayor Justin Elicker took the mic and expressed his and Police Chief Otoniel Reyes’s solidarity with the protesters, while noting that that the New Haven police had no involvement in this officer-involved shooting.
“I saw the video and I’m outraged,” said Elicker (pictured). “I’m not a law enforcement officer, but I can be pretty confident that actions taken by the officer are not what should have been done. It’s critical for us to stand and make sure that all of our law enforcement are held accountable and to a high standard.”
Echoing sentiments driven home by Board of Alders President Tyisha Walker-Myers at Monday night’s MLK Day service at Varick Memorial church, Elicker said, “I stand side by side with you to make sure that these things do not continue to disproportionately impact young black and brown men in this city. We must do better.” He said he called the state public safety commissioner today to express his concerns about the shooting and to request a face-to-face meeting as soon as possible.
Before the crowd dispersed for the night, marching back up to downtown with the cries of “Hands up! Don’t shoot,” Ortoleva led the group in one more call-and-response prayer for her late friend.
“Mubi we love you,” she said and the crowd echoed back. “Mubi we see you. Mubi we will bring you justice. You are our family. And we will not stop. Until justice is served. We are all Mubi’s family standing here today. It is our job to serve justice to those who do not have a voice.”
Click on the Facebook Live videos below to watch excerpts from the rally.