A crowd of nearly 1,500 Madison-area high school and college students marched on Wisconsin’s Capitol building Monday, as the community continues to reel from an officer-involved fatal shooting that claimed the life of a black teen. With chants of “Black lives matter” and “Jail killer cops,” many of the students said they were marching to demand justice for 19-year-old Tony Robinson.
Robinson was fatally shot by a Madison police officer on Friday night, who entered an apartment after hearing a disturbance. Robinson was unarmed, although Madison police say the officer opened fire after he was attacked. The state Department of Justice is investigating the incident.
Jemel Ware with the Young, Gifted and Black Coalition said the effort was intended to help students know they have a voice in the wake of a shooting. Ware said “right now we have a lot of youth that are hurting. We need to make sure their voices are heard, because they are Tony Robinson.”
Students then marched to city hall, where they demanded a meeting with Mayor Paul Soglin and Police Chief Mike Koval. Soglin came out to address the crowd and urged them to get involved in a community discussion on racism, along with their role in changing that situation.
The protest ended peacefully. Capitol Police say no arrests were made during Monday’s demonstration.
