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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2020
Travis Washington of Flossmoor, IL holds his hands up on the SIU campus on Saturday.
VOL. 103, ISSUE 19
Angel Chevrestt | @SoBroFoto
Alum and activist returns to SIU for TED Talk: Q&A with Travis Washington Keaton Yates | @keatsians
Travis Washington, an SIU alum, created the Hands Up Act in hopes of reducing police brutality. The Hands Up Act is a proposed bill that would make it illegal for police officers to shoot unarmed citizens. If an officer were to shoot an unarmed citizen, they would have to serve a 15 year sentence. Washington is coming to speak at SIUC’s TEDx event on Jan. 25. Washington took the time to answer a few questions to follow up his progress on the Hands Up Act, which he will be discussing at the TEDx event. Daily Egyptian: Where have you been? What have you been up to? Travis Washington:
TEDx comes to SIU Bethany Rentfro | @Bethany Rentfro
SIU will be hosting a TEDx Talk on Jan. 25 which will feature several speakers, including SIU students and alumni. The event will take place from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Student Center. These talks are designed to spark conversation about heavily debated topics in the nation. According to the TED Talk website, a TEDx Talk is a showcase of speakers who present well-informed and well-researched ideas, usually under 18 minutes. The speakers and topics of discussion that will be
“After the Hands Up article came out, I started doing more traveling. I got an internship with the US Senate office. I was invited to give a speech at College of Democrats of America, where there were congressmen and attorney generals there.” Washington was invited to St. Louis by the Michael Brown Foundation and gave a speech there, he said. He met Michael Brown’s and Tamir Rice’s mothers, who are both huge supporters of the Hands Up Act. On Aug. 9, 2014, unarmed Michael Brown was fatally shot by a police officer in Missouri. Then on Nov. 22, 2014, another unarmed person named Tamir Rice was fatally shot by a police officer in Clevland Ohio. These two deaths resulted in protests nationwide
and started the Black Lives Matter movement. “I don’t want to say it was a dividing moment, but that was a moment where I was like ‘I’m headed in the right direction. I’m hitting the right people.’ Since then, I have received more than 400,000 signatures and I made it into the New York Times. I’ve had six governors contact me.” DE: Where all have you been, state wise? Washington: “I went to Lorraine Motel, where Dr. King died; they were one of the first few supporters, and she told me just to drop off my newspaper of the Hands Up Act and they told me to keep going.” Washington has also traveled to New Orleans and Memphis to speak about the Hands Up Act, he said. Please see WASHINGTON | 7
presented at the event are as follows: Bianca Adams-Gaston Adam-Gaston will talk about how a person can achieve greatness despite having a disability. Adams-Gaston presented her research when she attended graduate school at Lindenwood University in Missouri. Adams-Gaston has Cerebral Palsy and hopes to use the SIU TEDx platform to debunk popular myths surrounding CP and people with disabilities. Mohammadreza Jalaeian Jalaeian is currently pursuing his doctoral degree in Philosophy in Learning Systems & Design Technology at SIU. He will speak about how artificial intelligence
will bring change to on-the-job training. Kombe Kapatamoyo Kapatamoyo is pursuing a doctoral degree in Philosophy & Health Education at SIU. She believes her experience as a graduate assistant helped to instill in her the importance of sharing ideas through public speaking. Kapatamoyo’s presentation will be about unmasking one’s true self and being authentic about who you are. Felicia Kimbrough Kimbrough is a board certified Nurse Practitioner and Terrier Care Provider at Carbondale Community Please see TEDX | 10