Every Wednesday since 2013, Tawanda Jones has led a vigil to honor her brother Tyrone West’s life and call for justice for his death. West died on July 18 of that year after he was apprehended by Baltimore City police officers, who claimed he was driving too slowly. 

The vigils are called West Wednesdays. Sometimes, they are online. Other times, they are held in various parts of the city. Their focus is on justice and accountability—not just for West, but for all victims of police violence.

Jones said that her fight is motivated by love for her brother and for Baltimore.

“The passion has always come from a place of love. That’s my big brother. I love him past death,” she said. “I will never stop, I don’t care how many years. And then the love that I have for my brother extended to my community and to all the victims of police brutality and murder.” 

On Wednesday, March 13, West Wednesday organizers held their 555th gathering. The group met at City Hall and then marched through the streets of Baltimore, with Jones leading the way. 

Jones said this gathering placed a special emphasis on unity with other organizations working in Baltimore City. It was organized in collaboration with almost 30 other local groups, including the Coalition of Concerned Mothers, Organizing Black, and the Baltimore Peace Movement. 

“So much is happening in our city and we need to pull together different coalitions, different races, different backgrounds,” Jones told Baltimore Beat the following Monday. “We felt as though it was very important to actually get together with not just our coalition, but everybody that’s doing something in the community.”

Jones connected her brother’s death, which started with a traffic stop, with the Baltimore Police Department’s recent increased focus on traffic stops. 

“They are pretty much trying to bring back stop-and-frisk, the zero-tolerance [policing], without saying it,” she said. (Lisa Snowden)

The post Photostory: 555 West Wednesdays appeared first on Baltimore Beat.

On July 29, we held a fundraiser and celebrated one year of Baltimore Beat. 

These photos were shot by Joe M. Giordano and David “Wavey” Anderson at the Baltimore Summer Jam Fundraiser at The Compound. They capture the feeling of that night beautifully. Folks danced, assembled, and had fun — in the sweltering Baltimore heat. 

There were two zones of simultaneous performances for folks to experience. The Compound event space had DJ sets from JaySwann, Kade Young, DJ-SUN, Tromac, Trillnatured, and Emily Rabbit. There was also a live performance by Saaphyri Wildz. 

In the outdoor courtyard were live performances by Hormone, Lefty Bey, accompanied by Sleepy Sword, Mowder Oyal, Infinity Knives, and Brian Ennals. 

Kade Young closed the night out in the event space, as DJ-SUN and Tromac had led a surprise back-to-back closing set outside. 

Thank you to Pobal Sounds for donating additional speakers and equipment, providing bass and elevated sound for the dancers, and keeping the energy going all night. 

Thank you to the Hast du Feuer crew for your technical support and Topo Chico for sponsoring the event. Thank you, Celestial Spaces and Bird Box, for being on-site. 

Thank you to the artists who performed and brought your positive energy into the space. 

Our Summer Jam Fundraiser was the most successful fundraiser we’ve had. Thank you to those who attended in person and donated online. 

Thank you to our readers. We could not do this work without you. (Teri Henderson) 

The post Photostory: Baltimore Beat Summer Jam Fundraiser appeared first on Baltimore Beat.