#what happened to Quawan Charles

[africanamericanreports]

(via What happened to Quawan “Bobby” Charles)

It's been two weeks since 15-year-old Quawan "Bobby" Charles disappeared from his father's Baldwin home in St. Mary Parish and 10 days since officers discovered his body in the rural Iberia Parish village of Loreauville. Little information has been released by law enforcement in the case, which gained widespread attention after Bobby's family released a graphic image they say was taken while confirming the teen's identity to authorities.

[spiderweb-bf]

Image credit: selfpaid.lailia on instagram

Image transcription under the cut

On October 30, 2020, a 15 year old black boy named Quawan Charles “Bobby” was found lynched near Loreauville, Louisiana. His face was mutilated and unrecognizable like another Emmit Till. He was last seen with a white peer and that peer’s guardian without the consent of Charles’ guardians. The Baldwin Police Department could have saved his life, but instead they did nothing, and they continue to refuse to be cooperative with his family. The Charles family just want answers. They just want to know what happened to their baby boy.

PLEASE LEARN ABOUT QUAWAN CHARLES. PLEASE SPREAD AWARENESS ABOUT THIS. PLEASE STOP SHARING THE GRAPHIC PHOTOS.

[cherrysnax]

TW// death, antiblack murder, emmit till imagery, hate crimes

black people, be careful, people are spreading images of a Quawan Charles, a 15yo black child who was brutally murdered. Extremely graphic images of his corpse, along with the corpse of Emmit Till, are being spread around due to what started as a informational post. At least on tiktok, people are using it as a jump scare and using him as a meme. please be safe, and stay vigilant. I know you’re tired.

Also to add, if you happen to see a donation link from his family, the first image you will see is his corpse, so please keep this in mind if you wish to donate.

[bfpnola]

A child was lynched in my state of Louisiana. A child. Was lynched. We cannot continue to let the murder, the absolute mutilation, of Black folks, of Black children, to continue. Please continue to share his story and put pressure on the investigators of his case. Please. #QuawanCharles

[ID: So You Want to Talk About Quawan Charles

Fifteen-year-old Quawan “Bobby” Charles went missing in rural Louisiana on October 30th.

The Iberia Parish Parish Sheriff’s Office Patrol Division and Bureau of Investigation claim to have located Quawan’s body on November 2nd. 

He was found in a sugar cane field 25 miles from his home. The sheriff’s department told his family that Quawan had drowned.

Per The Root:

“After three days of searching, one of Quawan’s friends mentioned that he last saw him in the car with a white lady and her teenage son, which they passed along to the police department, who were beginning to take Quawan’s disappearance seriously.” 

“The mother of the teenage son admitted that she picked Quawan up to ‘go hang out with her son,’ but after that, she doesn’t know what happened, according to investigators hired by the family. Neither Quawan’s mom or dad had ever met this 17-year-old son or his mother according to The Root’s interviews with Quawan’s family members and attorneys.”

Per The Cut:

“Police found Quawan’s body in a nearby sugar cane field later that day after talking to the Irvins. The sheriff’s office told the family that water was found in Quawan’s lungs, and he had drowned, but the family says photos of Quawan’s body show that his face was incredibly mangled.”

“Celina Charles, a cousin serving as a family spokeswoman, said that Quawan’s mother, Roxanne Nelson, ran from the viewing room wbhen she saw his body. The Post reports that, in a photo of Quawan, ‘the teen appears so disfigured that his teeth are visible outside of his mouth.’ Charles told ABC that Quawan ‘looks like he’d been tortured.’ Nelson has since shared photos of his body online to call attention to Quawan’s death and to pressure law enforcement to act.”

Quawan’s family has received no answers.

Quawan’s family has accused the Baldwin Police Department of ignoring their concerns and refusing to investigate when they reported him missing on October 30th. Police would not issue an Amber Alert. 

“He was found dead under mysterious circumstances, and we just want an honest and thorough investigation with Iberia Parish Sheriff Department,” Quawan’s stepfather Jason Nelson told KATC.

It has been nearly two weeks since Quawan went missing and the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office has just released a statement saying that they are investigating “suspicious circumstances.”

What you can do:

Amplify + share Quawan’s story. 

Put pressure on investigators. Demand answers & justice.

Iberia Parish Sheriff Thomas S. Romero: info@iberiaso.org / 337.369.3714

Baldwin Police Department: Chief Harry Smith / 337.923.4835

Follow @JusticeForQuawanCharles to stay updated on the case.

End ID.]

[ohaiym]

Quawan “Bobby” Charles was murdered

15-year-old Quawan went missing and was found days later in a sugarcane field in Iberia Parish. When his body was retrieved he had a large knot on his head and body appeared to be disfigured.

After the family reported Quawan missing to the local police department, they did not issue an Amber-alert which is usually standard once a child is missing more than 24-hr hours. There hasn’t been an autopsy report as of yet and the family believes they are not receiving the media coverage the case deserves. I’m no detective, I’m no news reporter, I’m no journalist, I am a person who happens to be a mother who has a heart with hopes that with me sharing Quawan’s story justice will soon be served.

I hate hearing stories like this and hate sharing stories like this even more. I like to think if the shoe was on the other foot what would I want to be done. The most I can do currently is share his story and pray that peace and justice come to Charles’ family.

Black children go missing way too often in America. About 14% of US children are black, but black children account for more than a third of missing child cases. It’s easy to scroll past these types of stories and pretend it didn’t happen but it did happen and you can help make a difference by sharing his story and educating yourself on things that are happening across America to black children and adults.

[ace-with--a-mace]

Every single fucking day I and many other black people wake up hating being black in America. We can't do anything in this country without being too suspicious or too threatening or looking too violent or 'scaring' people or 'attacking' people.

⚠️Rant ig, cut it off so you dont need to read it if you dont wanna⚠️

We can't breathe, can't sleep, can't play with water guns, cant jog, can't buy stuff, can't walk by certain towns, can't party, can't play music, can't come home from subway, can't exist, can't play outside, can't walk home from work, can't go to target, can't play with our children outside on our property, can't be at the wrong place at the wrong time, cant walk into our own homes, cant get legally and respectfully pulled over, can't use our cellphones, can't eat bread, can't play with nerf guns, can't enjoy being children without having to please other people just so we can hope of coming home safe, can't wear hoodies, can't shop without being checked and scanned for theft, can't participate in certain paid activities because people assume you're broke, can't get proper recognition in media, can't talk about our struggles without being dismissed as too soft or too angry, can't get icecream, can't tell people what is and isn't racist, can't be taken seriously, can't get justice, can't do anything. When will all the fucking can'ts end?? It's so exhausting, our presence alone could 'justify' our murders. Elijah McClain, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Trayvon Martin, Quawan Charles, Tamir Rice, Stephon Clark, Gabriella Navirez, Brandon Bernard, and so many more people who should be alive today. We fight countless hours, days, weeks, months, even years on end and never receive a sliver of justice and yet nothing happens because nobody takes us seriously and they selfishly live in the lie that everything and everyone is equal in 2020, when thats far from the truth. Black Lives fucking Matter, and if you don't support BLM or support blue lives matter or support Trump then get the fuck off my page.

[lafleaurie]

i hate the fact that NO ONE is talking about Quawan Charles’ death. he was 15 YEARS OLD!!! another black, innocent life taken from us, and at such a young age. please read the article. https://www.theroot.com/what-happened-to-quawan-charles-1845637599

[randomness-fandomness12]

A little bit about Quawan “Bobby” Charles’ Lynching

So, I was reading around and doing research of sundown towns for a paper I’m writing and I found out about 15 year old Quawan “Bobby” Charles who lived in Acadiana, Louisiana. He went missing on October 30 and was found dead in a creek (which is questionable because he couldn’t swim). His body was mutilated and he doesn’t look the same as he was when he was alive. When his mother started to get worried about him not responding to multiple missed phone calls, interactions with police were brushed off until 3 days later.

Although there is an extremely high chance this was racially motivated, the police have not ruled anything nor has a call about the reason of death been made. His family is raising money in a GoFundMe to conduct their own autopsy, as the church community of St. Mary’s release the reports of the first autopsy. If you do plan to donate, keep in mind that a photo of his body (along with Emmett Till’s) is on the front page.

https://gf.me/u/y7sxu4

Protests are being organized for the police to actually DO something and arrest/find his killers. Please share and do some more reading into this information, and let the people in charge know that we will not let this stand.

Some extra reading:

https://www.theroot.com/what-happened-to-quawan-charles-1845637599

https://www.klfy.com/local/justice-for-quawan-protestors-demand-arrests-in-baldwin-teens-homicide-investigation/amp/

[tammyfeabakker]

Watch "What happened to Quawan Charles face?" on YouTube

[ydolanssss]

https://gf.me/u/y7sxu

Quawan charles was found lynched November second. As you can see in the picture text to him is a black and white picture of Emmett Till. That's what they are comparing his murder too. The parent asked the police to make an amber alert and they said "no worries he's probably at a football game" he was taken from his house by a friend and thier parent w/o his parents knowing. The family wants a independent autopsy done to find out what actually happened.

[poopootwinkle203955849499310]

A 15 y/o boy named Quawan Charles went missing on October 30th. He was found on November 3rd of this year. The sheriff's department told his family, after they found him, that he drowned.

Quawan Charles's family didn't believe that, because the pictures showed otherwise. He was found in a sugarcane field.

Ronald Haley said the sheriff's department would've put more effort into the investigation if it weren't for his race.

The last people Quawan Charles saw before he died were his friend and his friend's mom.

[jamr0ck83]

What, Exactly, Have You Done to Help Build a Less Racist America?

So, here it is, the end of November.  I think we can all agree that 2020 was not the year we wanted (although I might argue that it’s not all of us who didn’t deserve it).  Yes, this year has been an absolute mess.  But also, it’s not some grand accident that just happened to befall us.  Everything that has transpired this year has been in the making for years, decades, centuries even.

We are getting rocked by Covid-19 because our healthcare system is so inadequate and predicated upon profit that it’s not at all set up to deal with this situation.  Also, one of the things that’s always been held as a virtue in America is its citizens’ sense of individualism.  Everyone is responsible for their own destiny and has the right to make any and every decision for themselves.  That’s what we’ve told ourselves makes us a great nation.  The problem with that is, in this pandemic scenario, many people then don’t feel obligated to withstand any kind of personal inconvenience to help keep others alive, even if those others are their own family members.  We want what we want when we want it, and we won’t take “no” for answer.  Unfortunately for us, pandemics aren’t really concerned with making sure Americans don’t have to play by the same rules the rest of the people on this planet do, and when viruses come to kill you, they will kill you if you don’t respond appropriately, and there’s no chapter in The Power of Positive Thinking that effectively helps you wish death away.

It’s an election year, which should’ve been a surprise to no one, especially not to those of us who have been counting down to this year since the 2016 Presidential Election.  And let’s be real; this was an awful election year.  Due to the realities (as opposed to promise) of living in a democratic republic, we really only have two viable political parties, and real talk, neither of them are meeting the needs of the people, and that’s definitely not new.  The Democratic Party offered way too many candidates, especially when they had absolutely no intention of letting anyone but Biden secure the nomination.  And it shouldn’t have surprised anyone that they did this.  The Democrats have BEEN riding the wave of appealing to the idealistic and progressive portions of the population for votes and then once those votes are received, their focus is keeping their own jobs.  And not even keeping their jobs for the sake of leading the nation and providing the people with what they need; they just want to keep their jobs. And Trump has spent a lifetime of telling half-truths and outright lies, so there was no scenario where he was going to abandon that to become a “respectable politician” this go-round.  So, his entire campaign was propaganda nonsense, and because all of our mainstream news outlets are so concerned with ratings, they played and replayed and replayed every ridiculous thing he said, which was helpful to no one.  Point being, the way our media corporations are cogs in the wheel of unfettered capitalism, that’s not new at all, either.

And then the #BlackLivesMatter Movement became a thing more than black people were talking about.  And to be clear, the movement itself isn’t new and black people being murdered by police with astronomical frequency isn’t new, but apparently things don’t matter until white people care about them, so this became a huge “aha” moment for many of them.  But again, all of this?  Not new.

My point is that all of these things have been building for some time, and it’s unfortunate that they all decided to implode in the same year, but the implosions were inevitable.  But when it comes to #BlackLivesMatter, it seemed like we had reached a crucial moment back in the spring.  People saw that video of George Floyd and then heard about Ahmaud Arbury and Breonna Taylor, and there seemed to be an urgent desire to get some societal changes made which would include tackling racism.  And a lot of people vowed that this time would be different.  White allies were going to rise up in droves and be the ones to see to it that this world, in which their privilege serves to oppress others, was going to change.  They said, “we’re going to have to be the ones to end racism, and we will.”  And as I recall, black folks were optimistic but skeptical, and there was a sense that many allies were basing their allegiance in their need to make themselves feel better instead of a need to see the humanity of all respected.  And to be fair, many of us black folks tried to warn them not to do this.  “It’s not about your feelings,” we said.  “Basing it on that alone isn’t sustainable,” we said.  But allies assured us they were in it for the long haul this time and would prove it with their actions.  And I, for one, was willing to see how that went.  So, I offered resources where they were needed and provided perspective on some of the issues and then trusted that white people were doing the work.  And this was a mistake.  And I don’t think the failure of most white allies to actually do the work is the mark of people being malicious; I just think they got bored and were ready to move on.  And I think they also saw that this wasn’t going to be as easy as getting everyone to “find common ground”.  And as the work began to require them to do more than post a black square and say “black lives matter” out loud, that became too inconvenient and too uncomfortable.

So now, it’s November.  And white allies, many of you were beside yourselves with shock to see Trump get so many votes, and it was nearly like 2016 all over again.  But what exactly did you perceive had changed since May that would mean less voters would align themselves with the white supremacy antics of the Republican Party?  How did you expect those votes to go from Republican to Democrat when you knew just from talking to your family that they had no intention of voting for Democrats?  What exactly did you think had been accomplished in the struggle to fight racism?  And what were the specific things you did in order to help make this happen?  Here; I will list a few examples of action steps, and you can see which of them you did.

Have you read any books by black authors regarding the history of racism in this country and the ways in which we’ve fought against it in the past?

Have you read anything by black authors regarding the contemporary issues facing Black America like higher unemployment and prison rates and the wealth gap to learn more about the systemic reasons why these problems persist?

Have you watched any documentaries about Black History and/or contemporary black issues like Eyes on the Prize, I Am Not Your Negro, and Central Park 5 by Ken Burns?

Have you arrived at the conclusion that the version of American History you were taught is fraught with grandiose lies promoting white supremacy and basically ignores any black people of prominence who weren’t Dr. King or Rosa Parks?

Have you wondered why it’s those two people that have been chosen as our black heroes by mainstream white culture?

Have you realized that even the version of Dr. King and Rosa Parks that you were taught that painted them as passive and nonthreatening is wholly inaccurate?

Have you checked out any black entertainment that you might have never thought to notice before like:

TV shows such as Living Single (which was ripped off and reworked into the mega hit we know as Friends) and A Different World (which tackled many issues of its day including AIDS, bigotry, and date rape AND had such an impact on the black community that, during its original run, enrollment in HBCUs increased drastically)?

Famous playwrights like Lorraine Hansberry and August Wilson?

Famous authors like Colson Whitehead and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie?

Famous poets like Langston Hughes and Nikki Giovanni or even someone more up-and-coming and contemporary like Kai Davis?

Famous artists like Jacob Lawrence and Kehinde Wiley?

Famous musicians like John Coltrane, Earth Wind & Fire, A Tribe Called Quest, and Talib Kweli?

Famous films like Malcolm X, The Hate U Give, and BlacKkKlansman (none of which rely on the overly-played and inaccurate trope of the white savior who ends up diffusing hostile racial conflicts by merely learning to care)?

Have you had any meaningful conversation with friends and family in which you explained the basis and need for the BLM movement and why it’s not a political stance to say that black people should not have to still be fighting to be acknowledged and respected in 2020 AND have you done that without validating any of their bigotry and misconceptions with phrases like “Yes, I agree that both sides are the problem” or “Yes, it’s valid to feel that being pro-western culture does not necessarily mean being pro-white”?

Have you looked inward and really thought about the biases you harbor within yourself, where they came from, and what you can do to re-conceptualize these ideas?

Have you checked on your black friends in these past several months?

Have you realized that you don’t really have any black friends or that you don’t have any black neighbors or that there are no black kids that go to your kids’ schools and see how problematic ALL of those things are?

Have you been aware of all the terrible things that have happened since the death of George Floyd that have traumatized the black community such as the death of Quawan Charles and the fact that the grand jury convened in Kentucky was not even given the option to issue murder indictments against the police officers who shot and killed Breonna Taylor?

Have you been following any contemporary black activists like Shaun King, Tamika Mallory, Gary Chambers, and Stacey Abrams who have been doing the legwork of enfranchising black voters, leading protests, and using their voices to lead and denounce systemic racism?

Have you been willing to determine whether white fragility is something you might unknowingly harbor and resolve to change that?

Have you grown concerned that support for BLM has dwindled significantly between the end of May and now, and have you decided to do something about that?

Have you realized that, if you were shocked by how many people STILL voted for Trump in this election, that probably means you’re not as in tune with the prevalence of white supremacy in modern America as you thought you were?

Have you re-examined your base level of respect for the Republican Party after witnessing them spend the last couple of months trying to steal this election and how that was in direct response to the belief that they couldn’t allow too many black votes to be counted because they’d likely be against them, which is not at all the way of a democracy?

Have you maintained the same anger and determination to “be the change” that you felt when you watched that video of George Floyd having the life choked out of him?

Have you finally come to the conclusion that grounding your fire to combat racism in your feelings CANNOT be the way to move forward, because the second you feel better, your desire for change will wane, even if nothing has really improved?

How many of these things can you honestly say you’ve done?  And I don’t ask that as some sort of indictment on your character or to shame you.  I ask because I am being honest and realistic when I tell you that any plan you might have that does not include the majority if not all of these things is not a plan that will work.  There are established methods for being effective allies; nobody is asking you to figure that out on your own.  People have been working to secure the rights of the oppressed for centuries, and it’s pretty certain that you’re NOT going to invent some new way that gets the job done AND allows you the comfort you are used to.  This can’t be like Covid-19 when many Americans assumed the rules of science don’t apply to them because they didn’t want them to.  And you don’t get to sit on this until you feel like playing a more active role is convenient, because people are dying while you make your plans for the holidays.  And maybe that’s a low blow, but I don’t know else to put it.  Black people are not a cause you can keep putting on the back burner because you’re not ready to deal with it.  And obviously no one has the power or ability to make you engage in ways in which you are not comfortable, but if that’s the case, then you need to own that.  And stop acting like racism is some rare occurrence in America that is largely on the run.  IT IS NOT.  So, stop telling black people that lie, because none of us believe it, and it’s insulting to constantly be told that, anyway.  You don’t have to be an ally, but you don’t get to opt out of being one and still claim to be a defender of all humanity.  Either you are someone who believes something is wrong and you want to work to change it, or you are someone who doesn’t care.  There is no middle ground, there are no further considerations to be made.  It’s not hard to decide which of these people you are.  So, which one are you and what are you going to do about it?

Above image from WAM Theatre

[rauthschild]

Watch "U.S. hits 11M COVID cases; Trump admits Biden won; What happened to 15-year-old Quawan Charles?" on YouTube

https://youtu.be/7y7HJjOlk7M

[informationman06]

Quawan Bobby Charles What Really Happened Suspicious Circumstances Aroun...

[techcrunchappcom]

New Post has been published on https://techcrunchapp.com/quawan-charles-family-compare-teenagers-death-to-1955-lynching-world-news/

Quawan Charles: Family compare teenager's death to 1955 lynching | World News

A black teenager, who was found dead in woods in Louisiana, is believed to have drowned.

Quawan “Bobby” Charles’ disappearance and death has sparked speculation about racial crime.

The 15-year-old’s family filed a missing person’s report on 30 October in the St Mary Parish town of Baldwin.

His body was found four days later around 20 miles away in woods near the Iberia Parish town of Loreauville.

Police are treating the death as a homicide and have urged anyone who has any information to come forward.

Sheriff Tommy Romero said: “I want to assure the public that I, and my team, are doing everything we can, and following every lead, to gather evidence into what happened in the untimely death of Quawan “Bobby” Charles.

“Any loss of life is a tragedy and that is especially true when it is a young person.”

The Iberia Parish Coroner’s Office said there was no evidence of any pre-death injuries.

It said any trauma was caused by the post mortem or by aquatic animals, as his body was found in water.

Evidence of drowning included muddy water in his airways, “hyper inflated lungs” and water in his sinuses.

Quawan’s family has set up a fundraising page to raise $15,000 (£11,400) for an independent post mortem and other expenses.

The page, which shows a photo of Quawan next to one of 14-year-old Emmett Till who was lynched in 1955, has so far raised more than $244,000 (£185,000).

Ron Haley, one of three civil rights lawyers representing the Charles family, said in an email statement: “We certainly hope that the Sheriff Office and all of the local agencies are putting more energy in solving the mystery of Quawan’s death than they did in trying to find him when he was reported missing.

“Though it may appear that the relationship between the Charles family and the local agencies has been adversarial, at the end of the day the family just wants truthful answers so that they know how and why Quawan died regardless of who provides them those answers.”