Omari Salisbury on KUOW: The Footage That Reclaims the Narrative of Antonio Mays Jr.
Omari Salisbury recently sat down with Libby Denkmann and Will James on KUOW's “Soundside” to discuss recently rediscovered footage from the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest (CHOP) in June 2020. This video, filmed by Salisbury, captured the words of sixteen-year-old Antonio Mays Jr. just days before he was tragically shot and killed in the zone. For years, Mays Jr.'s public image was tarnished by narratives casting him as a criminal, but the rediscovered tape offers a critical opportunity to restore his dignity by allowing his voice to set the record straight.
In the footage, Antonio Mays Jr. is heard expressing profound thoughts for a young man, stating, "I would like to make it known that I wish that the police would have more supervision when it comes to their training." This revelation counters the revisionist history surrounding the Seattle protests and reveals Mays Jr. as an ideologue interested in systemic improvement. The piece emphasizes the powerful, emotional experience of hearing him "speak from the grave,” in Salisbury’s words, and calls upon the Seattle community to embrace empathy for the young man, whose father filed an ongoing civil lawsuit against the city.
