Six months after the death of Breonna Taylor, a Kentucky Grand Jury reached a conclusion on the trial for the three officers involved in her death. None of the officers involved were charged with the death of Breonna Taylor.  Officer Brett Hankison was charged on three counts of wanton endangerment.

Before the announcement was made, the governor of Kentucky, Andy Beshear, declared a state of emergency in Louisville in anticipation of protests after the jury’s decision towards the Breonna Taylor case. In response to the court’s decision, protests erupted in Louisville, Kentucky, Portland, Oregon, and other cities across America. 

The grand jury’s decision also hit close to home for many students and members of the MFS community. While many were outraged with the outcomes, they were not surprised. 

Janae (Nae) Maddrey ’22 expressed that she was not surprised by the jury’s decision. “Personally, I am disappointed but not surprised. For years on top of years, the American Judicial System has failed people of color. It is no surprise that, even with the evidence, confessions, and the law being broken, the decision was in the favor of the police officers,” said Maddrey. “This country has continually disappointed its unprotected citizens. It is just amazing that people still seem to question why we are as angry as we are. The fact that we only want justice and not revenge and people are upset about this just shows the true colors of our nation.”

Kat Johnson ‘21 also shared how she felt about the situation. “I think it is ridiculous and extremely inconsiderate that the jury believes they served ‘justice’ and ‘protected’ the American people. I feel this is going to cause more unrest within our society, and further expose the ingrained racism, and sexism, within our country,” said Johnson. 

Also commenting on the grand jury’s decision was Dorthy López, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at MFS. She said, “The news of the verdict saddened me, but was not surprising. In this role as the Director of Diversity and Inclusion and a Black woman, I am still processing it all. Although I had a glimmer of hope that justice would have been served for Breonna and her family, here is another example that reinforces systemic oppression and the devaluing of Black people in this country. As a community, I hope that we can come together with a shared understanding that Breonna deserved to live and that this Grand Jury verdict shows a lack of an accountability structure in our criminal justice system.”

Lopez went on to explain how the MFS faculty will be supporting the MFS community following The Kentucky Grand Jury’s decision.

“The Diversity and Inclusion office is working together with the divisional offices and the Quaker and Religious Studies department on ways to support faculty, staff, and students through this moment and plans to offer space for reflection and healing in the near future. I hope that those of us who are deeply affected by this news will take time to heal, process, and regain the strength needed to continue to work towards justice,” said Lopez.