***UPDATE BELOW***

About 30 demonstrators rallied this morning outside criminal court in Burlington to denounce racism and voice support for an African American family involved in a July 1 fracas with Burlington police. The demonstrators held placards and chanted slogans such as “BPD — Stop police brutality!”

Susalyn Kirkland, 56 (pictured below), greeted the protesters following a brief appearance in court on charges of impeding a public officer, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. A hearing on her case was set for August 14.

“I didn’t do any of that,” Kirkland declared outside the courthouse on Cherry Street. “I don’t know why they’re lying,” she said in regard to Burlington police. “They should be telling the truth.”

Two of Kirkland’s sons — Hassan Williams, 16, and a 15-year-old whose name is not being disclosed — are said by police to have attacked Sgt. Brad Trombley. The officer was responding to a complaint of BB guns being fired at a Spring Street home in the Old North End.

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Kevin J. Kelley is a contributing writer for Seven Days, Vermont Business Magazine and the daily Nation of Kenya.

7 replies on “Protest Denounces Racism in Vermont and Supports Old North End Family”

  2. Racism will never go away until it stops being used as an excuse.
    The boys screwed up and attacked a PO because they are hooligans. Gram steps in and gets a little testy (perfectly understandable) but clearly went a little over board with cops who were pissed from being bitten and punched by her grandkids. That’s not racism. You weren’t targeted for being black, but because your grandkids are punks that are breaking the law.
    Set an example Mrs. Kirkland… apologize, admit your wrong doings and accept responsibility.

  3. Remember when it was “It’s all those black or nonwhite neighborhoods, it’s all those single mothers”?

  4. seriously? this is not a black/white thing. this is a low life thing. get jobs, support yourselves… every day I drove by this house and there were bunches of people hanging out the porches, smoking, swearing and NOT WORKING, not teaching your teenagers not to play with guns and not to shoot them at neighbors, not teaching them that when people say “please stop shooting at me!” they should flipping stop shooting!!!…. Why is it okay to defend these people that are taking your tax dollars. Maybe all those people who are protesting should up their contributions to the populations that decide working is not in the cards for them.

  5. I’m not really sure how this is racism or police brutality, unless one is asserting that the officer did not have any substantial injuries (my understanding via the BPD release was that he was transported to FAHC and did have a bite wound on his arm, perhaps among other injuries). If that’s what they are asserting, then I can respect the argument – the facts would need to come out, but I can at least understand their position. But they seem to not be addressing the fact that the officer was attacked, at least in the police account of the matter. BPD’s press release was pretty detailed and shocking – it can be seen here: https://local.nixle.com/alert/…
    As a side note, I recall a year or two ago BPD was trialing wearable cameras. I wonder what happened to that – I think in these sorts of incidents, having an unbiased (i.e. video) perspective from the officer’s view would be very helpful in resolving/dispelling this sort of a thing.

  6. I do not know what happened here and have not seen the video. I do know that the police always exonerate themselves and I do know they behaved reprehensibly in the pepper bullet shooting of peaceful protestors last summer. I have also had personal experience of being stopped when I was with African American women friends simply talking on a street corner.

  7. “I do not know what happened here and have not seen the video.”
    But you’re offering your anti-police opinion anyway?

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