In LA, activists 'summon spiritual energy' to seek justice for Keenan Anderson

Amid pouring rain, interfaith and spiritual leaders offered prayers in African, Christian, Muslim, and Indigenous traditions during a candlelight vigil on January 14 to honor Keenan Anderson—a teacher and father and the cousin of Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors—who died after Los Angeles police repeatedly tased him following a traffic crash.

The vigil was not a protest but a “spiritual gathering,” said Melina Abdullah, co-founder of the Los Angeles chapter of Black Lives Matter. Abdullah said they will be protesting in the coming days against police response to traffic, mental health, and school-related incidents. But, Saturday’s convening was meant to “give love and our spiritual energy to the family.”

“We have to summon spiritual energy,” Abdullah said. “It’s spirit that will get as much justice as we can in Keenan’s name.”