Dear Friend,
Sadly, we invite you to join us in a tri-state COVID-safe car rally tomorrow starting at 3:30 pm in Santa Fe. By now you may have heard of the police shooting of Rodney Applewhite, an Indiana state resident who was driving through our state on his way to Arizona, to spend time with his family on Thanksgiving. His family's lives changed when New Mexico State Police shot and killed him just outside Los Lunas, New Mexico. When Rodney didn't arrive to his family's house in Arizona on time, they got worried. His family read online that an unarmed Black man was shot by police in New Mexico. It took NM State Police over 9 hours to notify his family.
This Friday, we are supporting a car rally to bring attention and demand the immediate release of body lapel camera footage and evidence of the traffic stop from the New Mexico State Police.
Rally point will be at DeVargas Center between 3:15 pm and 3:30 pm (map here - southwest parking lot close to old office max) How to participate in a covid safe car rally: *Stay in your vehicle at all times *Keep your mask on always *Keep your windows up *Make signs and place them on your vehicle or you can use Window Paint *Our volunteers will be available to support with any further logistics on the ground
If you are in Albuquerque, please check out the Facebook page for more info about caravanning together north to Santa Fe. Please share as well. Can't make it, no worries, you can take action from home too.
Please follow this link to make calls and send emails to hold New Mexico State Police accountable, take action HERE.
Rodney Applewhite, 25, was driving through New Mexico late last week on his way to Arizona to spend Thanksgiving with his mother and other family members.
Just outside of Los Lunas, on the last leg of a trip that started in South Bend, Indiana, a New Mexico State Police officer attempted to pull Applewhite over for what was described as a traffic stop. It was 8:32 a.m., a NMSP press release said. About 10 minutes later, two state troopers tried to arrest Applewhite. When an altercation occurred with the first officer, the second officer shot Applewhite, firing “at least one round,” the NMSP said. Applewhite, unarmed, died that day in the hospital.
“I can’t sleep, I can’t eat. I’m heartbroken,” Applewhite’s mother, Katrina Cox, said by phone. “Why is it always shoot to kill? Because he’s tall and he’s a Black man?” Cox said she did not find out about her son’s death until nine hours after the Nov. 19 incident. At that point, Applewhite was overdue to arrive in Phoenix, and they were worried that he hadn’t answered their calls.