Walter Wallace’s family called for an ambulance.
Dear friend, add your name to tell Philly officials :
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Walter Wallace, Jr. should be alive right now.
Dear friend, we’re still coming to terms with what happened in Philadelphia on October 26. Last Wednesday, city officials released bodycam footage worn by the officers who fatally shot Walter Wallace, Jr.1 And once again, we find ourselves heartbroken, outraged and crying out for justice for another Black man murdered by police.
Here’s what we know : Walter Wallace, Jr., a 27-year-old father, was experiencing a mental health crisis. Walter was living with bipolar disorder, and his brother did what most would do if our loved one were in crisis : He called 911 to request an ambulance.
Unfortunately, two Philadelphia police officers arrived on the scene before medical responders or an ambulance. And tragically, we already know how this story ends.
Instead of de-escalating the situation or providing Walter with the mental health care he so desperately needed, instead of listening to the heartbreaking pleas of Walter’s mother, the responding officers Matarazzo and Munz shouted out demands with guns drawn.2 Walter never got closer than 15 feet from the officers. They shot at Walter 14 times.3
Dear friend, we’re sick and tired of watching Black people be terrorized and killed by police, and we’ve seen too many videos depicting Black suffering on our social media feeds. We don’t need a video to know that Walter’s murder in broad daylight was unnecessary and nothing short of reprehensible.
We mourn the loss of our slain Black brother. His death has shaken the city of Philadelphia to its core and has re-ignited promises of piecemeal "reform." Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw even requested additional funding !
More money for Philly cops won't make anyone safer. What we need now is justice for Walter Wallace and structural change that will prevent what happened to him from ever happening again. That's why Color Of Change is standing with The Amistad Law Project, Reclaim Philadelphia, and Philly We Rise to demand it.
Walter Wallace, Jr. was a father, a twin brother, and a son. He was expecting to welcome a baby with his wife, Dominique. But none of that mattered to the cops who killed him. Philadelphia police didn’t see an expectant father experiencing a manic episode during a particularly difficult time. They saw a threat to “neutralize” — a man guilty of being Black in America.
Sadly, we have been here before. In September, Color Of Change joined Free The People ROC and local activists to launch a campaign demanding justice for Daniel Prude — an unarmed Black man who was murdered by Rochester police responding to a mental health call.4
Like Daniel Prude, Walter Wallace was in the throes of a mental health crisis and had a history of mental illness. Like Daniel Prude, Walter’s family called 911 for help, as a last resort. Instead of receiving the help and care he needed, like Daniel Prude, Walter Wallace was murdered by police in the street.5
Make no mistake : From Philadelphia to Rochester, Minneapolis to Los Angeles, police are not equipped to respond to mental health crises. Instead of funding programs that actually keep communities safe, cities rely on untrained police officers from overfunded police departments to respond to health emergencies, mental health crises, and people who are unsheltered and simply trying to survive.
Instead of handing police more money and more power to cause harm, the city should invest in unarmed civilian first responders trained in de-escalation. Because underfunded community services put all of us at risk.
But here’s the thing, dear friend : When more than 100,000 Color Of Change members demanded justice for Daniel Prude, something shifted. Rochester’s police chief and deputy police chief were fired, and the city established a new “crisis intervention unit” — a non-law enforcement response to calls involving mental health and domestic violence crises.6 It’s not perfect, and our fight for justice didn’t end there. But it was an important step forward — and Philadelphia must take similar action immediately.
Dear friend, we’ve said it before, and we’ll say it until our people are safe : Cops are not equipped to protect Black, Brown, and Indigenous people. But we'll keep fighting every day to defend Black lives and invest in true community safety.
With your help, dear friend, we'll keep fighting every day to build a more equitable world for Black people, and a country where all Black lives really do matter — all the time, everywhere.
Sign the petition now: Demand justice for Walter Wallace.
Until justice is real,
Scott, Rashad, Arisha, Erika, Malachi, Marybeth, Ernie, Leonard, Madison, McKayla, Ericka, Ariel, Ana, and the rest of the Color Of Change team.
References :
1. Philadelphia Police Release 'Traumatic' Bodycam Video Of Walter Wallace Jr. Shooting. 04 November 2020, NPR.
2. What we know about the Philadelphia Police shooting of Walter Wallace Jr. 28 October 2020, CNN.
3. Walter Wallace Jr: Philadelphia police confirm that two officers fired 14 shots at Black man killed Monday. 28 October 2020, The Independent.
4. Demand Justice for Daniel Prude. Color Of Change.
5. "His brother called for help after he was acting strangely. Police knelt on him until he was brain dead." 02 September 2020, The Appeal.
6. City establishes new crisis intervention unit following Daniel Prude's death. 16 September 2020, ABC 13 WHAM.
Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Please help keep our movement strong.
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