Pittsburgh has been the center of a considerable amount of discussion about race and justice since an East Pittsburgh police officer shot and killed black teen Antwon Rose on this day last year.

To remember the death of Antwon Rose II, Pitt’s Black Action Society organized a die-in protest on the front steps of the William Pitt Union on Wednesday. About 120 people, mostly Pitt students, joined in sitting or standing near by. The group remained there, silent, for 40 minutes — 10 minutes for every day of the trial of former University and East Pittsburgh police officer Michael Rosfeld, who shot Rose in June 2018. This event marks the sixth day of “Justice for Antwon” protests since the jury acquitted Rosfeld of all charges.

Unlike other protests that have taken place throughout the City over the past week, this one — a die-in in honor of Antwon Rose, organized by Pitt’s Black Action Society — was completely silent.

“[The goal is] just to show solidarity between all students on campus and faculty and staff, but specifically black students and just to show support for Antwon Rose’s family,” Edenis Augustin, the Black Action Society president, said.

A group of more than 1,000 turned out Monday for a student-led walkout Downtown in protest of the acquittal of former East Pittsburgh officer Michael Rosfeld in the shooting of unarmed black teenager Antwon Rose.

Hundreds of Pittsburghers gathered Sunday for “Rehumanize: A Vigil for Muslims in New Zealand” to honor the victims of the Christchurch shootings, which occurred on March 16.

A jury acquitted Rosfeld Friday after only four hours of deliberation, which drew peaceful protesters to the Hill District neighborhood less than 24 hours later.

The time it took for the jury to reach a decision compared to the gravity of the crime shows how little we value the lives of young black men in America.

Following the announcement on March 22 of a not guilty verdict in the trial of former Pitt police officer Micheal Rosfeld, protestors took to the streets of the Oakland campus showing their disagreement with the jury’s decision. The march began in Schenley Plaza at about 5pm and shut down numerous intersections as it paraded along Bigelow Boulevard and Atwood Street, as well as Fifth and Forbes Avenues. Beginning with a group of almost 50 people, the protest grew in number as it went.

Organizers of Saturday’s protests had three demands: The dismissal of the district attorney, the dismissal of a much-criticized police union president and the creation of a police review board.