Police Killings in Chicago (04:14)

FREE PREVIEW

Black Lives Matter conducts a protest in Chicago. They cite the names of black residents killed by the Chicago Police Department.

Janae Bonsu and Bella Gambrell (05:46)

Janae Bonsu is an organizer for the Black Youth Project 100, which focuses on black feminist and queer issues. Bonsu helped organize the #SayHerName Rekia Boyd March, where Ambrell "Bella Bahhs" Gambrell performed an activist rap.

Police Abolition (06:06)

Gambrell's grandmother raised her because her parents were incarcerated; it drives Gambrell to fight for abolition. Bonsu works on her dissertation about community accountability in abolition movements.

Rekia Boyd (03:12)

Gambrell feels black women killed by police, like Boyd, are not talked about as much as black men. Boyd was shot by off-duty police officer Dante Servin while walking in a park on March 21, 2012. Criminal charges against him are vacated.

Police Disciplinary Board (04:22)

At the board's monthly meeting, community members ask for Servin to receive punishment. The board, including President Lori Lightfoot, refuse to address the question. Only 3% of officers with complaints against them get punished by the board.

Black Women (06:25)

Gambrell talks about the power of black women and the misogyny of black men. Bonsu learned how to be an organizer with BYP100 from other black women.

Black Queer and Feminist Organizers (06:06)

BYP100 organizes through a queer, feminist lens. Sexism and homophobia within black liberation movements harms its progress. Many men are more interested in changing their relationship to power.

Bonsu in the South (06:14)

Bonsu is exhausted from her activism and doctoral studies; she goes home for the holidays to South Carolina. Attending a majority white high school made her want black spaces and led her to Chicago and activism.

Laquan McDonald (05:55)

A dash cam video of CPD Officer Jason Van Dyke shooting teenager Laquan McDonald shows how the city tried to downplay what happened. Van Dyke shot McDonald 16 times and it took more than a year for Prosecutor Anita Alvarez to file charges against him.

City Cover-up (05:26)

A week after the McDonald video is released, Mayor Rahm Emanuel calls for Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy's resignation. He resigns, but Emanuel and Alvarez are also part of the cover-up; it sparks more protests, organized by young black people.

Bonsu and Gambrell's Work (05:01)

Bonsu goes through a round of edits on her social work dissertation. Gambrell writes her brother, who is in prison, and considers applying for an activist fellowship.

Black Community Leaders (03:12)

Gambrell attends the Black Soul Nation picnic on the West Side. Mass incarnation and police violence eliminated community leadership structures. Bonsu's dissertation is about finding a different solution.

Prison System (07:42)

Gambrell and her mother drive four hours to see her brother in prison. Generations of her family have been incarcerated, which has created intergenerational trauma. Servin resigns from the CPD days before his disciplinary hearing.

Sister Survival Network (04:59)

Gambrell and other activists create the Sister Survivor Network. They feel it is important for other black women and femmes to see that healing is possible.

Activist Community (06:13)

Bonsu defends her dissertation and passes. She is happy she moved to Chicago because it has increased her understand of black women. Gambrell finds healing through activism with black women.

Credits: Unapologetic (05:07)

Credits: Unapologetic