Lawrence teen's death fuels mother's call to end gun violence – The Lawrence Times

Natasha Neal, a prominent Lawrence activist, is channeling her grief into a renewed fight for justice and systemic change after her 17-year-old son, Isaiah Neal, was shot and killed on June 13.

Natasha is the activist behind the 2020 Occupy Mass, a Black Lives Matter street protest outside the Douglas County Justice and Law Enforcement Center. She has been at the forefront of other protests, including those calling for the dismissal of charges against Rontarus Washington Jr. and Albert Wilson. She also advocates for an end to gun violence.

The night Isaiah died, Natasha was sent by Lawrence police to the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City. After about an hour's drive, her daughter told her that Isaiah had been taken to Lawrence Memorial Hospital. When Natasha arrived, the hospital was closed. When she finally entered her son's hospital room, he was already dead.

“I don’t want what I experienced between the police and the hospital to happen to other parents,” she said. “They should never have to go through what I had to go through because of who I was. »

Lawrence-Douglas County firefighters, air ambulance services and hospitals monitor where a patient goes, according to Lawrence Police Department spokeswoman Laura McCabe.

“The initial plan was actually to transport the patient to KU, and it changed several times as the patient’s condition evolved,” McCabe said. “These situations are extremely fluid. Our officers’ intent is always to provide family members with the most reliable information they have at that time and update them as quickly as possible.”

Communication problems and the hospital lockdown prevented Natasha from saying goodbye to her son. She wants to solve such problems for others.

“One thing I just want to emphasize to the hospitals is that when Black people come into your hospitals and they are crying and grieving and showing emotion; there is no reason for a shutdown,” Natasha said. “There was no reason for this hospital to be closed.”

Isaiah's death will further strengthen her mother's activism. She is already considering initiatives such as introducing an Isaiah Law and creating a foundation in his memory.

On Saturday afternoon, Natasha hosted a balloon release for Isaiah at Broken Arrow Park in Lawrence. It was there that Isaiah was taken to the emergency room before being sent to Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

Cortland Davis, who works with Natasha in her activism, was there.

“This is not new to us,” Davis said. “We’ve been attending funerals of our loved ones since we were teenagers and we died violently. I think it’s time to reflect. What’s the takeaway from all of this?”

Natasha used the balloon launch to ask for peace, along with lawyer LaRonna Saunders.

“We are calling for a ceasefire between black and brown communities,” Saunders said. “Because we are the ones most affected. »

Natasha and Saunders want to end all the drivers of violence. Natasha has seen that violence is affecting young people more than ever before, and that they are experiencing “consequential” losses.

Isaiah had suffered so much loss that he was about to enter therapy. “It’s not bad to get help,” he told his mother. Isaiah was killed before he could attend his first session.

Washington, one of the men Natasha helped free from prison, and his son were at Isaiah's side the night he was killed. They were as close as “brothers.”

“It really bothered me,” Washington said. “I took loss after loss after loss.”

Kansas Reflector is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kansas Reflector maintains its editorial independence. Contact editor Sherman Smith with questions: [email protected]. Follow Kansas Reflector on Facebook and Twitter.

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