A disturbing video of a white Kansas cop kneeling on a Black pregnant woman’s back has surfaced, leading to calls for the officer’s arrest and termination.
In the video, the cop pins 25-year-old Deja Stallings to the ground with a knee to her back. He proceeds to handcuff her while people expressing their concerns are instructed by another officer to keep their distance. Police claim the clip doesn’t tell the entire story.
On Sept. 30, cops responding to calls of a fight in a parking lot arrived outside of a Conoco gas station in Kansas City, Missouri. They were attempting to arrest local activist Troy Robertson when Stallings tried to pull him away. Cops took her into custody and issued a municipal summons for physically interfering with an arrest.
Stallings, who is reportedly nine months pregnant, went to the hospital afterwards and has occasionally needed medical care.
Since footage of the incident made its way around social media, people have been demanding that the officer involved be fired. They are also calling for KCPD Chief Richard Smith to resign.
“The most recent act of brutality of a pregnant woman, an unborn child, is yet another example of the culture of brutality, callousness and disregard for the citizens of our community,” said Kevin Woolfolk of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
“This cannot and will not be dismissed, this double assault on humanity,” added Rev. Rodney Williams, president of the NAACP Kansas City chapter.
Protesters have been gathering around City Hall for several days in support of Stallings and have requested that half of the city’s police budget be redirected to social services for the Black community.
“We’re at the seat of government and we’re having a social justice occupation that hasn’t been seen in Kansas City,” said attorney Stacy Shaw, one of the demonstration’s organizers. “People are excited that we are taking such drastic action and sticking to it. So we’re not just here for 15 minutes or a couple hours, that we are actually sticking to this and demanding justice.”