My Brother is Walter Wallace Jr.
Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and so many more Black individuals have brought national attention back to those who are killed at the hands of police. I mourned, I grieved, and I kept pushing the same message as everyone else: Black Lives Matter. These people could be friends, uncles, coworkers. But, when I heard about Walter Wallace Jr., my heart stopped and my body went numb.
I thought of those moments when he was taken away by the visions.
I thought of those moments when he was doubled over in laughter so contagious it took over the entire room.
I thought of those moments when he attacked me and my mom because the voices in his head told him to.
I thought of those moments when he achieved things no one ever thought he could, like walking down the stairs on his own.
I thought of those moments when we couldn’t get the medication right and it left him zombie-like for days.
I thought of those moments when we’d just sit on the couch holding hands and watching TV.
My brother is a die hard Eagles fan. He currently attends Villanova, his dream school. We grew up going to church on 46th and Lancaster.
I didn’t know Walter Wallace Jr. or his family, but the man they are talking about:
That’s my brother.
Every time I see Walter’s name, every time I see that video come across my newsfeed, every time I hear them attempt to justify the officers’ actions through the criminalization of this man’s life.
That’s my brother.
They killed him. They killed him because they didn’t care about the loss of life. They didn’t see him as a person. They didn’t see him as a human being.
But when you do recognize someone like Walter as a human being. When you do recognize the fact that he was having a mental health crisis. When you do recognize the painful advocacy of his mother pleading for his life to his dying breath. When you do recognize that he deserved a chance.
That’s trauma.
Half of people who are killed by police have some form of disability.
So when you see people say things like “Defund the police!” They are not saying police do not matter. They’re saying:
Mental Health Matters.
Mental Health Awareness Matters.
Ahmad Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd
Walter Wallace Jr.
My Brother
Matters.
