On May 28, 2020, Louisville protesters filled the streets, calling for justice for Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old Black woman who was shot and killed by police in her apartment during a botched raid months before.
On Wednesday, several activists from that time gathered at Jefferson Square Park — known as “Injustice Square” — which was once the epicenter of protests against police brutality.
They dubbed the event “Breewayy Day,” in honor of the groups of Louisvillians who spent weeks calling for police accountability and reform.
Bruce Sweeney was a prominent figure at protests since the beginning. His shirt read “Breewayy Warriors,” in honor of Taylor and the commitment he and others made to racial justice. He said it felt like “a big family reunion.”
“I want people to know that Breeway Day is a place of healing, a place of rejoice, a place where everybody has a voice,” he said. “A place where everybody brings their thoughts and ideas to the table, and we get there together.”
Maxwell Mitchell spent much of 2020 livestreaming the nightly protest marches on Facebook.
“These are people who decided to take a consistent stand to bring justice for Breonna Taylor, but also stand up for citizens who couldn't or weren't able to come out here,” he said. “These are the people who decided to put their lives on the line.”
Gerald Jacobs has been fighting against police brutality since the 1970s, and he said he’ll continue to do so until he sees change in Louisville and beyond.
“I’m an activist,” Jacobs said. “And the police killed my uncle [in] 1979. Shot him eight times. I'm out here for Breonna, but I'm also out here for my uncle.”
In the park’s center, a memorial with paintings from local residents surrounded a vibrant portrait of Taylor. To the right, there was another painting of Taylor donning a blue uniform with her last name stitched on the front. She worked as an emergency room technician before she died, at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It's a beautiful site,” said Tanneshia Guy with Volunteers of America Restorative Justice. “It just kind of speaks volumes with the Black community, when things are getting torn down and taken away, us as a community have to come together and build it back up, regardless of the trials and tribulations.”
To the left of the commemorative pieces was a portrait of Travis Nagdy, a 21-year-old activist and protest leader. He was shot and killed in November 2020 in an unrelated incident.
“He was a great leader, and he was young,” said Jasmine “Sunflower” Harris. “I met him down here, I wish I would have met him before that, but he was gone too soon. I'm grateful to meet him down here behind this cause.”
Since 2020, only one officer has been convicted for his actions during the raid on Taylor’s home. Last week, the U.S. Department of Justice moved to dismiss the federal consent decree in Louisville, an agreement meant to outline police reform that stemmed from outrage over Taylor’s death and a scathing federal investigation.
“It was definitely a two steps forward and three steps back kind of moment,” said Kinisha Carey with VOA RJ. “Now it’s just a matter of trying to push forward with the mission of the consent decree, and trying to figure out what can our next step be as a community when dealing with the mayor and the [Metro Council] and all their plans.”
Local leaders including Mayor Craig Greenberg and police chief Paul Humphrey say they are committed to reform without federal oversight. Greenberg unveiled a plan to do that last week.
“We need to continue to make our voices heard and demand the changes that we need to see happen in our community,” said Taylor’s aunt Bianca Austin at the event Wednesday.
There is still work to be done, Carey said.
“[Breeway Day] is about like, memorializing and remembering what we all went through, and also the reason why we did it, because it's not over,” she said. “The consent decree is still a big issue. Justice is still being sought, and we are still trying to move forward.”
