Protesters halted traffic as they called for a reinvestigation of Gregory Johnson Jr’s death by blocking the intersection of Santana Row and Stevens Creek Boulevard Friday night.
Johnson was a Black San Jose State student and fraternity member, whose body was discovered at Sigma Chi in 2008. The SJSU police said Johnson killed himself, but his parents believe the campus chapter murdered him, according to a 2009 Spartan Daily article.
After his death, the FBI investigated the alleged hate crime. Johnson’s parents were denied information about the case and it was left unresolved, according to a 2015 Spartan Daily article.
The student-run Justice for Gregory Johnson Instagram page posted a response from SJSU president Mary Papazian regarding the case’s reinvestigation on Sept. 4.
Black Liberation and Collective Knowledge (B.L.A.C.K.) Outreach San Jose organized the “Slow the Row” event, which took place Friday from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. to raise awareness about the injustice of Johnson’s investigation, according to the organization’s Instagram post on Sept. 29.
SJSU students, community members and passersby waited in the plaza for an hour for the event to begin. At 8 p.m. they congregated around the organizers and listened to them talk about Johnson. A chairman for B.L.A.C.K Outreach San Jose said SJSU and the FBI never seriously investigated his death as a hate crime.
Aidan, an SJSU sociology junior who did not want to reveal his last name out of personal safety, said he could relate to the protesters’ frustration with the police’s lack of empathy toward minority groups.
“I’ve been to other protests where [a minority] is killed in cold blood . . . And what does the police do about it? Nothing,” Aidan said.
He said he didn’t know about Johnson prior to the event, but participates often in Black Lives Matter protests. He said he assumed the event was for the movement after seeing the post.
“Are we going to forget about [Gregory Johnson]?” a B.L.A.C.K Outreach San Jose chairman asked the crowd of about thirty people.
“Hell No!” they responded, holding up handmade signs with “Black Lives Matter” and “Matter is the minimum” painted on it.
Protesters walked through the streets shouting “No Justice, No Peace!” while slipping the event flyers through car windows.
The headlights of the parked cars illuminated protesters' signs and faces as they chanted more phrases like “Fuck [Johnson’s] university” and “If we don’t get [justice], we’ll shut [Santana Row] down.”
Elena Trujillo, an SJSU public health senior, said she is “all for” the protest and wants SJSU to respond.
“I’m hoping this event will open up [SJSU administrators’] eyes and make them say something about [Gregory Johnson], and do something about it,” Trujillo said.
At around 9:00 p.m., the protestors walked out of the intersection and poured into the open spaces of the plaza.
The organizer said he wanted protesters to make eye contact with diners, to make them make them feel guilty for not acknowledging Johnson and the BLM movement.
“I want [protesters] to look at everyone [sitting down] in the eye and ask, ‘Are you comfortable with this?’ ”a B.L.A.C.K Outreach San Jose organizer said.
Organizers handed out cans of red, green and white paint for people to paint a “Justice for Gregory Johnson” sign in the middle of the street.
“[What happened to Gregory Johnson] could happen to anyone of you!” Aidan said as people passed by the protesters painting.
Around 10:00 p.m. the protesters moved from the street and stepped onto the sidewalk to reveal the finished sign. Customers dining on Santana Row got up from their tables to snap photos of it and people from the apartments above the street stood outside on their balconies and cheered at the protesters.
Lorenzo, a nurse practitioner in Salinas who did not want to give his last name out of concern that his attendance could bring controversy to his workplace, said he heard about the event while walking around Santana Row that evening. He said he ended up staying for most of the night to watch the event.
“I know people are against [protesting] and they say it's enough, but I can guarantee all these people [in Santana Row] are going to be talking about it tomorrow,” Lorenzo said. “At the very least [this] raises awareness, which is the most important thing.”
