Fatal shooting of Black teen roils liberal town in Oregon
The killing of a young Black man last month by a white man who complained that he was playing loud music has roiled Ashland, Oregon, forcing the liberal college town that is famous for its Shakespeare festival to take a hard look at race relations.
The death of Aidan Ellison, 19, added another name to the list of Black men and women whose killings have sparked a nationwide reckoning with racism and fueled a surge in a Black Lives Matter movement.
“What can be said about this teenager who was full of spirit? He was just getting started on his lifelong journey when he was taken from us,” Ellison's family said in a statement released by his mother, Andrea Wofford. “Enough is enough. How many Black men have to die before this community takes hate crimes seriously?”
On Nov. 23, Robert Keegan fired a single shot into Ellison's chest after complaining about the music late at night in a motel parking lot. He is being held without bail after pleading not guilty to second-degree murder, manslaughter and other charges.
Keegan, 47, is from the nearby small town of Talent, which was heavily damaged in a wildfire in September. He and Ellison were both staying at the motel but apparently did not know each other before that night.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/fatal-shooting-of-black-teen-roils-liberal-town-in-oregon/ar-BB1bBCGa?li=BBnb7Kz
Ashland may be a liberal town but it's in a more conservative part of Oregon. I worked in Medford which is just north of there for about a month and a half two years ago.
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