Rev. Osagyefo Uhuru Sekou is an organiser, author, film maker, pastor and member of the Fellowship of Reconciliation — the country’s oldest interfaith peace organisation. A graduate of St. Louis Soldan High School, Sekou has deep ties to the region where he experienced and has written about his own experiences of racism and violation by police when growing up there.
Sekou has spent the past three months in Ferguson participating in the daily protests demanding justice for Michael Brown during which he remarked that he needed a “gas mask” more than his “clergy collar” He has co-led trainings for over 800 people in nonviolent civil disobedience and was arrested twice for acts of civil disobedience. He has strongly defended protesters for engaging in “rich tradition of non-violent civil disobedience” pointing out “the greatest amount of violence occurred when Mike Brown was shot down like a dog and left in the street for four hours.”
Rev. Sekou has a record of protesting and writing about police racism, killings and a justice system which “betrays its name”- from organising a march whilst a student following the acquittal of police who beat Rodney King to visiting Britain in the wake of Mark Duggan’s shooting by police.
Rev. Sekou is currently Scholar in Residence at Stanford University’s Martin Luther King Education and Research Institute. He is active on wide range of other social justice issues including Palestinian Rights, climate change, homophobia and sexism.
Recent & media appearances:
19 August, Democracy Now, Pastor: In Ferguson Police Crackdown, I Need a Gas Mask More Than My Clerical Collar
Oct 2, Ebony (with Cornel West) And the Young Ones Shall Lead Them: The Ferguson Rebellion and the Crisis in Black Leadership
2 Oct, St Louis American: Praying While Black: Rev. Osagyefo Sekou detained by police, calls for clergy to join Weekend of Resistance
23 Nov, American Aljazeera, The Clergy’s Place is with protesters in Ferguson
25 Nov, Democracy Now! Riot as the Language of the Unheard: Ferguson Protests Set to Continue In Fight For Racial Justice
11 Dec, St Louis American: Eric Garner Matters
Background:
Sept 9 2012 Huffingdon Post There will be at least one riot
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