Around 30 students gathered on American University’s quad on Nov. 4 to protest the lack of conversation on campus regarding the contentious Nolan Wells case verdict and to raise the importance of amplifying Black voices on campus.
Wells, an 18-year-old Black boy from Mississippi, was found face-down and dead on July 6 along the shoreline of Horn Island, Mississippi. The cause of death was declared “undetermined,” but is likely to have been a drowning, according to NPR.
Wells, the only Black person on his friends’ trip to Horn Island, was left on the island by his three white friends who departed without him via boat. With questions still left unanswered — how Wells entered the water and how he received contusions on the back of his head — national outrage at the likely drowned verdict ensued. The case sparked multiple protests on college campuses and cities across the United States, with many standing in solidarity with Wells’ family demanding answers and a further investigation.
Gyselle Ready, one of the protest organizers and a freshman in the School of Public Affairs, said the lack of conversation about the Wells’ case on campus was a sign she had to start the conversation herself.
“You need to be the change you want to see in the world,” Ready said.
The last on-campus marching protest regarding Black Lives Matter at American University was in 2019.
Protesters took two laps around the quad, shouting “No justice, no peace,” “We want the truth” and “Black Lives Matter.” Student participants encouraged others to join and make their voices louder as they marched.
Nahindra Massillon, a freshman student in SPA, said that the University’s status as a predominantly white institution has created an exclusionary environment for Black students, and their passion to demand justice for Wells is part of a broader conversation about advocacy for Black voices to be heard and listened to on campus.
Protesters said that if Wells was white with Black friends, there would be more attention to the issue.
“AU is kind of known for being like the “wokest” campus and very politically active, so I was honestly disappointed that nothing had really been said,” Ready said.
Adiya Kaur, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, heard about the protest from a text chain and joined organizers on the quad. Kaur held a sign that read: “Nolan Wells did not drown.” Kaur said they hope student conversations will illuminate the injustice of conversations surrounding Wells’ death.
Another organizer, Jada Grey, a freshman in SPA, said that they are planning another protest.
“Next time, it will definitely be bigger,” Grey said.
This article was edited by Sophie Milner-Gorvine, Cara Halford and Gabrielle McNamee. Copy editing done by Avery Grossman, Abigail Jose, Mattie Lupo and Arin Burrell. Fact-checking done by Luca Palma Poth.
