Statement on the Murder of Sonya Massey
**GEO mourns the murder of Sonya Massey and stands firmly in solidarity with racial justice and liberation **
The Graduate Employees’ Organization at the University of Urbana-Champaign, IFT/AFT Local 6300, stands in solidarity with Sonya Massey’s family and joins them in demanding that Sangamon County investigate the decision to hire Sean Grayson despite there being several concerning incidents in his employment history and arrest records. Sonya Massey was brutally murdered by Sean Grayson, a sheriff's deputy, on July 6, 2024 in Springfield, Illinois after she called the police for help. Sonya was 36 years old and a devoted mother of two. We mourn the senseless loss of her life and condemn the racist violence that led to her death.
In addition to being a Black woman, Sonya was diagnosed with schizophrenia. One-third of all unarmed women killed by the police are Black and people with severe mental illness are 16 times more likely than the general population to be killed by law enforcement in the United States. This horrific event is yet another unfortunate reminder of how deep the plague of white supremacy runs in our country and this world. Black people, especially Black women, are not given the safety, consideration, and respect they are rightfully due as humans.
Sonya’s death also echoes generations of anti-Black violence. Massey’s ancestor, William Donnegan, was lynched in 1908 during the Springfield pogroms targeting African Americans. Springfield, less than a 1.5 hour drive southwest of Champaign-Urbana (CU), has a long history of Black racial oppression and struggle. In response to 1908 racist mob action, activists such as WEB Du Bois, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Mary Church Terrell, and Jane Addams formed the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People).
Throughout these generations of anti-Black violence, police unions regularly undermine attempts to hold police officers accountable. On July 18th the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police Labor, the labor union that represents police in CU, filed a grievance against the termination of Grayson and are calling for him to be reinstated and reimbursed for lost wages. GEO stands against police unions, which function to repress the working class and maintain the interests of bosses.
As a union, we understand the deeply intertwined relationship between racial justice and the labor struggle. There is no labor and economic justice without racial justice. We stand firmly in solidarity with all the movements and organizations, local and national, that continue the fight for racial justice and liberation. We urge our members to sign this petition demanding an investigation into the hiring of Sean Grayson as well as the resignation of Sheriff Jack Campbell who hired him. If you are able, please also donate to this fund dedicated to supporting Sonya’s family during this difficult time.