AKRON, Ohio — Jayland Walker was shot and killed by eight Akron police officers in one year ago Tuesday.
In honor of that anniversary, activists are hosting what they call a week of action. Events kicked off with a cookout and a vigil for Walker.
Akron activist Eric Adams was in attendance during the vigil and said despite the somber reason for gathering, these events help make their community more united.
“You know, it was billed as a celebration of life. We are just trying to honor and remember Jayland Walker,” Adams said. “We’ve definitely seen like a rising up of the people. People are becoming more connected and people are starting to care for one another more.”
Adams said they have seen their community grow stronger.
“I think a lot of people saw the police oversight board start and then nothing fundamentally changed,” they said.
On Wednesday, activists are encouraging people to pack the courts for protester hearings and then in the evening, head over to City Hall for the civilian police oversight board meeting to ask the board to vote for more power to investigate and issue subpoenas.
Throughout the rest of the week, there are several more events planned including a youth field day on Friday and a March on the Fourth of July.
