Students and community members gathered in the Kay Spiritual Life Center on Thursday, September 25, 2024, to celebrate the life of Marcellus “Khaliifah” Williams, who was executed on September 24, the day prior, by the state of Missouri after spending 24 years on death row.
Prior to entering the chapel, attendees were greeted by members of the Black Student Union and the Muslim Student Association and prompted to grab a small tealight candle or flower to place on Williams’ memorial altar following the event.
From the chapel’s main stage, Savannah-Rae Snyder, co-president of the Black Student Union, began the event with a pan-African call-and-response Snyder referred to as a “livation.” This tradition is often used during celebrations of life.
Chelsea Morton, a student who reached out to Black Student Union about speaking at the event, discussed the dangers of “state-sanctioned violence” on the Black community in the US during her speech.
Denia Smith, co-President of the Black Student Union, began her speech by engaging the crowd with a call-and-response chant, calling out the names of Black individuals murdered during encounters with the police and other state actors.
Smith continued by reciting a poem written by Ty Burell, co-founder of Equality Onward, a student organization mobilizing students around LGBTQ+ rights. The poem detailed the experience of witnessing and experiencing constant injustice at the hands of the state as a Black American.
“We cannot fight unless we mourn, we cannot mourn unless we fight,” Smith reminded the audience.
Haniyyah Zia, a representative of the Muslim Student Association, also gave remarks during the event on behalf of “the larger Muslim community [at American University] and the Muslim Student Association E-board.”
“Islam is a faith of activism,” she proclaimed, underscoring the Muslim Student Assocation’s involvement in the planning of the event.
Zia then went on to share the story of how Williams reverted to Islam while incarcerated, following which she led a Duah, or prayer, for the audience.
Hosts then opened the floor for audience participation, prompting a few members to join them on stage. Shelton Fantroy, a third-year student, spoke of the importance of “[continuing] the fight” for Black civil rights during his speech.
At the end of the ceremony, Snyder requested that attendees take out their phones and search for the lyrics of Amazing Grace, leading the audience in a collective rendition of the song.
The song filled the chapel with voices, and a collective feeling of hope for a more just future for Black Americans.
