S2E1: Justice 4 Trae

In Season 2 of Columbus Can't Wait we are focusing our attention squarely on the long history of police violence in Columbus, Ohio and the impunity of the Columbus Police Department. We believe families, we believe parents and caretakers, and we believe that they have the right to have their stories heard. We will speak with parents who have lost their sons to police violence, to elected officials, to activists, independent media outlets and community members doing the work to make change.

In our first episode, we speak with Hyme Darson, a forerunner for justice, an agent for change on behalf of mothers whose children were tragically, violently murdered and slain at the hands of police officers.

Hyme Darson is a single parent of four children including one daughter and three sons. Trae Darson, her third child, was murdered by Columbus Police Department officer Larry Whitman on August 30th, 2006 at Sunshine Int'l Food Market off of 161 on the North side of Columbus. 

In her first interview, Ms. Darson shares her son’s story, including what type of a child he was, the runaround she received in the aftermath of her son’s murder, the inaction taken by county prosecutors in the search for justice for Trae and the many discrepancies found in the official record and statements released by the CPD. 

Please listen and share her story widely. 

***Please note that this conversation may be upsetting and difficult to hear and we encourage you to take in the episode in spurts, taking breaks as necessary.***

And as a note on the stance of Columbus Can’t Wait: We demand justice for Trae Darson. We stand in solidarity with Hyme Darson and ask for officer Larry L. Whitman II to come forward with the truth and demonstrate accountability. We request that the case be reopened and all evidence become available to the Darson family, including Trae's personal items.

#justice4trae #justice4traedarson 

ACTIONS: Please follow Hyme Darson on Facebook and Instagram for updates:

Facebook:@justice4traedarson
Instagram: @justice4trae

Ms. Darson would also like to encourage those who have lost family members to police violence in Columbus to call us and share your story. Please leave us a voice note via our linktree or email us at [email protected]. 

To learn more about Trae's case, please visit our Patreon page where we share additional documentation provided by Hyme Darson - including the Columbus Dispatch ad and article referenced in the podcast as well as officer Larry Whitman's statement.

END CLIP: “The Hill We Climb” by Amanda Gorman performed at President Joe Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20, 2021.

Hosted by Tareya & EhKees. Engineered & Edited by Joshua Chandler. Music by Dev Draper. Executive Produced by Jenn Nielsen. Digital Production Assistant: Stephanie Bohanon.

00:00:00 INTRODUCTION

00:28:12 INTERVIEW

01:36:05 END CLIP

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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/columbus-cant-wait/message