Feminists Mourn & Demand Justice for Kohen Wiley
Feminist Generation is outraged and heartbroken by the killing of Kohen Wiley, a 1-year-old Black child killed by police outside a Walmart in Senatobia, Mississippi. We mourn Kohen and stand with his mother, grandmother, and all his loved ones in demanding transparency, accountability, and justice, NOW. We send love and support to Kohen’s loved ones and organizers on the ground refusing to let the headlines move on.
Feminism means safety, dignity, and humanity for all women and children, and especially for Black women and children. As feminists, we demand the protection of Black mothers and their families. We demand Reproductive Justice, a framework built by Black women that asserts the right to have children, to not have children, and to raise children in safe, sustained, well-resourced communities, free of state violence.
There is no Reproductive Justice when Black children are murdered by the police. There is no Reproductive Justice when Black families are denied the safety, resources, and freedom for their children to survive and thrive. To realize Reproductive Justice, we must divest from police and invest in alternatives that keep all communities safe and free. We demand a future rooted in Reproductive Justice in which Black children like Kohen can live with protection and dignity, and grow up in communities that are invested in and well-resourced. A future in which Black mothers can raise their children without fear or state violence, and all Black women can be free and safe.
We join Kohen’s family in demanding the following:
The immediate public release of all body camera and relevant footage
A full, independent, and transparent investigation into Kohen’s killing
An end to police violence
Long-term investment in the safety and material well-being of Black children, parents, and communities
We mourn Kohen and the life he was robbed of. We will continue to follow the leadership of his family and their demands for truth, transparency, justice, and healing.
Justice for Kohen Wiley, NOW.
The term “Reproductive Justice” was coined in 1994 by a group of Black women in Chicago who formed the Women of African Descent for Reproductive Justice. SisterSong was founded three years later in 1997 to carry forward a national movement for Reproductive Justice. Learn and support at: https://www.sistersong.net/reproductive-justice