His Life Mattered THEN and it Matters NOW, Carnell Russ

His Life Mattered THEN and it Matters NOW, Carnell Russ

As the nation was rudely awakened by the death of George Floyd, I was forced to reflect on the untimely death of my brother Carnell Russ.  Like George, Carnell lost his life upon an encounter with law enforcement.  It’s a time in my life – my family’s life – that changed the course of life for each of us. Singly. Collectively.

THEN

At the time of his demise, 24-year-old Carnell was a Son, Brother, Nephew, Grandson, Uncle and a Husband. The loss hit many, it hit hard, and it hit home. Carnell grew up in Star City, Arkansas as the ninth child of ten children born to Turner & Aggie Russ.  On Memorial Day, May 31, 1971, Carnell, his wife, a cousin and 6 of their 9 children were traveling home from Benton, Arkansas when stopped by an Arkansas State Trooper in Yorktown, Arkansas for allegedly speeding (75 in a 60).  Keep in mind that its 1971 – not far removed from the Civil Rights Era. This stop resulted in the death of my brother over a speeding ticket with a fine of $23.  Observe the correlation between Carnell’s and George’s unjust deaths. 

The attempted exchange of money.

Police encounter.

Death of a black, unarmed person.

Regarding Carnell’s encounter with the police, below is an excerpt of the writing that can be found in the Central Arkansas Library Systems Arkansas Encyclopedia.

Here you can read an updated full article of the incident published in Arkansas Times.  I would love to share a picture of my brother when he was alive even if were only a mugshot. There is no mugshot as Carnell was not arrested for this encounter nor arrested for any other matter EVER in his life. He walked into the police station that day to pay a $23 speeding ticket. He never walked out.

NOW

Very little has changed since 1971, thus the recent global unrest is understood.  When does it stop? When will ALL LIVES MATTER?  It has to be after BLACK LIVES MATTER. It simply has to be.

The George Floyd peaceful and unpeaceful protests have made a grand impact. Protests of any kind will not prevent additional killings of black unarmed men and women by law enforcement though. Change comes in layers and the protests were a visual layer.  All the layers will not be as visible, but they have to be actioned. All have to vote on local and national elections.  All have to be held accountable as a race, as a community and individually.  This warrants UNITY!  There are discussions to be had in homes, in businesses, schools/organizations, state offices, national offices. Laws need to be reviewed and revised as well as new laws need to be written/passed that are fair and applied equally.  

What happened to Carnell is history. Not just Arkansas history or black history. Its part of law history, US history.  History repeating itself over and over, and over, and over again. History that is part of my life’s story. A part of my life that I wish I did not have to think about or share.  I do though. I share it not to shame any law enforcement agency but to initiate community involvement, race relation and race education as I too have black sons, grandsons, nephews, black nieces, aunts, uncles and loved ones that can easily become a part of this tragic reporting of black lives lost upon engagement with law enforcement.  Unity by way of connecting, communicating, embracing differences and celebrating is a layer that anyone can partake in – the opportunity to be a part of the positive change is an option for you now! 

I started a nonprofit organization in honor of my brother, The Carnell Russ Foundation. There is room and a role for all in the process of uniting to intervene and then prevent people from having to share a story similar to mine and my brother - I still say his name, Carnell Russ.