Irene Kalonji

Every month, in every kind of weather, on the 12th at 6 p.m. a vigil is held at the street corner where Keaton Otis was killed in 2010. The last time I was able to attend was April. Tonight the vigil was led by Jo Ann Hardesty, and she invited Irene Kalonji to describe the day in January of this year when her son Chris, who was having a mental health crisis, was killed by police responding to the family’s call for help. Kalonji is Russian; her husband is Congolese. Their son, who was born in Israel, suffered from bipolar disorder, and she called for police help because she feared Chris would harm himself. Now Kalonji is joining with other parents who hope for change through the Black Lives Matter movement. A full description of the incident appears in the blog of the Mental Health Association of Portland.