ASALH Condemns the Horrific Killings in Jacksonville
The members of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) are saddened by the killing of Angela Michelle Carr, 52; Anolt Joseph Laguerre Jr., known as A.J., 29, who worked at the Dollar General Store; and Jerrald De’Shaun Gallion by another deranged gunman. Our hearts and sympathies go out to their families, and we stand with them and the citizens of Jacksonville to seek ways to end these senseless killings in our communities.
In recent years, our country has suffered from a pattern of lone-wolf gunmen seeking notoriety by killing innocent people who have done them no harm. Perhaps the worst example of these mass killings is when these deranged individuals murder schoolchildren. They see their actions as the epitome of the terror that they are trying to impose on our society.
Recently, some of these gunmen, such as this one in Jacksonville, have targeted African Americans. They have sought to start a race war by killing African Americans and inspiring other white supremacists to follow in their footsteps. They want to strike fear in African Americans and terrorize our communities just as white supremacists have done in the past.
But the members of ASALH know the history of these gunmen. We have seen their actions in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Rosewood, and Ocoee, Florida, as well as elsewhere in the United States. Since we know about them and their racist actions, we do not fear them. Just like our ancestors we will stand fast in our opposition to their violent actions against our communities and work with other Americans to take the guns out of the hands of those who should not have them.
The members of ASALH are also taking another proactive step. In September we are going to Jacksonville to hold our annual conference. We are going to show that we have no fear of the white supremacists who might threaten our physical well-being; nor do we fear the legislators who seek to deny the teaching of our history. While we are in Jacksonville, we will take the appropriate steps to protect our lives and we will hold sessions and activities to promote and defend the teaching of Black History.
About ASALH’s Public Commentary Committee
ASALH’s Public Commentary Committee is charged with two tasks. The committee is in charge of drafting public statements on behalf of the executive board. These commentaries must be pertinent and relevant to the mission of ASALH. Statements should be relevant and timely on issues of Black history and conditions of Black people or persons more generally and will be posted on the ASALH Website as the official commentary of the organization and/or submitted to the national media outlets as official commentary for discussion and debate. The second task of the Public Commentary Committee is rapid response to breaking news that affects the membership and chapters of our organization.
Media Contact:
Zebulon Miletsky, Marketing Committee Chair
[email protected]