Dear Community,
On May 30th, the night of my grandfather’s 86th birthday party, a Seminole County, Florida police officer unjustly arrested my son and me in a convenience store parking lot.
What began as a beautiful afternoon in a community center filled with birthday decorations turned into a horrific and traumatizing event for my son, my daughter, me and the rest of my family, near and far, who did not sleep until our release. In one moment we were sitting on the porch and listening to stories of my grandfather’s childhood. In the next, my daughter, my son and I were witnesses to a “routine” stop that left a Black man in handcuffs and, ultimately, my own son slammed on the pavement by a uniformed officer. Subsequently, my son and I were charged with obstruction of justice and spent the night in jail.
We became targets in the county that acquitted George Zimmerman of Trayvon Martin’s murder, and the series of events that took place thereafter were inexcusable. In hindsight, even during my most objective moments of remembering, I cannot find an excuse for the man who is supposedly charged with the task “to protect and to serve.” Instead, I remember the abuse of power and the violation of our civil rights and human dignity.
While my son and I were sitting, handcuffed, in the back of the police car, one of the backup officers told my daughter to “just go away.” They left her in a parking lot in the middle of the night, while my son and I were driven to a Seminole County jail.
After dressing in disposable underwear and blue jump suits and spending a few hours in the holding area, my son was taken away. I was later ordered to strip, to "squat and cough," and sent to solitary confinement after I refused a spray-down with a de-licer. I spent the night under sickly fluorescent lights and in a cell with a toilet that smelled as if it had never been cleaned while the prison guards laughed outside the door.
That night it did not matter that I am a loving mother, daughter and granddaughter. Nor did it matter that I am a writer and educator with a graduate degree who teaches at a state university. It did not matter that I have leadership positions on several non-profit boards nor that I’ve co-founded a non-profit of my own. No one cared that my daughter is a student at Yale nor that my son is studying show production at Full Sail University. It did not matter how many people love me or that I’ve devoted my life to serving my community. We were two more black bodies in an unjust system that is meant to harm our minds, violate our bodies and break our spirits.
I feel a sense of responsibility to challenge this abuse of power in the land of my kin and the county that allowed George Zimmerman to walk free. It would be easier to move on with my life once these charges are dismissed. but I feel a sense of urgency, whatever this looks like, to hold people accountable for their actions, because they will continue to inflict harm and trauma to so many others who are less fortunate than us.
It is humbling to ask for help, but I am reaching out to my community to raise $10,000 for representation by an attorney who is a kind man and a family friend. He is gifting us some time and is committed to justice being served for myself and my son. Once we deal with the criminal case, we will take on a civil lawsuit in order to bring light to the unjust treatment and targeting the police engage in everyday.
Although I have continued to show up where I need to be, I am still grieving the violation of my humanity and for the countless people of color who continue to be harmed by the criminal justice system. Unlike so many other Black mothers, my son survived his arrest. We are blessed to have a network of support, access to resources, and a grandfather who paid the bond for our release.
Still, my family needs your help.
Any amount will help, but if you are not able to donate at this time, your prayers and good wishes are equally appreciated. I am so grateful to live in a community that has been so supportive of me, my family and my work.
In Solidarity,
Tamiko
To read more about Tamiko's story please click here
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Visit www.FundedJustice.com
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