JAY-Z’s Team Roc is continuing to fight for justice for Alvin Cole. The Black teenager was fatally shot this February by Wauwatosa, Wisconsin police offficer Joseph Mensah, who has also killed two others during his past five years of service.
According to a press release, Team Roc has joined forces with Until Freedom, The Gathering for Justice and former Milwaukee Bucks player Caron Butler to deliver a list of demands and organize a rally in support of Cole set for Thursday (Oct. 15). The coalition is calling for the firing of officer Mensah and Police Chief Barry Weber, for Wauwatosa cops to be required to wear body cameras and for the harassment against Cole’s family and his supporters to stop.
“19 shots and three deaths in five years are not a pattern of accidents. How many more people must die at the hands of Officer Joseph Mensah?” an Instagram post from Team Roc read. The rally is set for 2:30 p.m. local time in Hart Park.
JAY-Z and Team Roc first called attention to Cole’s case back in July, while Mensah was under investigation for his latest use of deadly force. The officer used a total of 19 bullets against the victims: 17-year-old Cole; 25-year-old Antonio Gonzales, whom he killed in 2015 and 24-year-old Jay Anderson, who was shot in 2016. Mensah failed to administer CPR in all three cases and in two of the incidents, did not turn on his dash camera.
Last week, a prosecutor announced that Mensah would not face any charges for killing Cole.
“As someone from the Greater Milwaukee area, I was disappointed to see that Officer Mensah will not face any charges in this case,” Caron Butler, who will provide funds for the rally and pay for Cole’s headstone, said in the statement. “I’m devastated that Alvin’s family— and all of the people affected by Officer Mensah’s actions — are continuing to wake up in a world in which their loved one is gone and no one is being held responsible.”
“Team Roc and I will continue to do our parts and try to bring some measure of support to Alvin’s family as they continue to seek justice,” he added. We hope Governor Evers will step in to help them get the answers they deserve.”
See Team Roc’s rally announcement below.