Many gathered in Diversity Plaza in Jackson Heights on Saturday to show solidarity for Jaahnavi Kandula.
“It makes me sick to my stomach that could have been my sister, my cousin. She was just walking across the street,” Abdul Rahman, community activist and president of Muslim Entrepreneur Association (MEA), said.
What You Need To Know
- The South Asian community in Queens held a vigil for Jaahnavi Kandula
- Kandula, 23, was an immigrant from India and a graduate student
- She walking across the street and was struck and killed by a police officer in January driving above the speed limit on-duty
- Another officer Daniel Auderer, vice president of the Seattle Police, was caught on body camera video laughing when hearing about her death and his remarks caused outrage across the country
The vigil was a response to the release of police body camera video recorded after the death of Kandula.
Kandula, 23, was an immigrant from India and a graduate student.
She walking across the street in Seattle when she was struck by a speeding police cruiser that was on-call.
In the footage, released this week, a different officer, Daniel Auderer, vice president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild, is heard joking about her death.
Ananya Kachru of Manhattan says the video, for her, is hard to process as a brown woman.
“Just hearing those comments replay in my head is horrifying,” Kachru, youth national co-chair of South Asians for America, said.
Kachru says the officer needs to be held accountable and hopes people pay attention to this story, especially going into the 2024 election.
“This is the time for people to be talking to their candidates. What is their plan to stop police brutality against Black and brown people,” Kachru said.
Organizers hope the vigil will promote better policing practices, as well as a greater understanding of the immigrant experience in the United States.
“When things like this happen in communities, it is important for us to come together and call out these injustices,” Rahman said.