Samaria Bailey TRIBUNE CORRESPONDENT
Nearly 100 members of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. gathered in front of the Starbucks at 1801 Spruce St. on Sunday afternoon and spoke out against the racial profiling and arrest of their fraternity brother Rashon Nelson at the coffee shop two weeks ago.
The men, dressed in suits and ties, packed the corner of 18th and Spruce streets, presenting a striking image of concentrated blackness in a neighborhood where the ACLU reports that less than 3 percent the residents are Black.
Local and national leaders spoke for nearly two hours, urging the men to stand by their brother and pushing Starbucks to turn the incident into an opportunity.
“We’ve held the office of president of the United States, we’ve held the office of attorney general. We’re CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. We’re brain surgeons. We’re bankers. We’re educators. We’re athletes and entertainers. And you can cheer us on one day, and the next day arrest us and prejudge us because of the color of our skin,” said Antonio F. Knox, Omega Psi Phi Grand Basileus. “We’re asking that Starbucks join us, allow us to work together to create change all over because it’s not just [this] one company.” Read entire article in the Philadelphia Tribune
