The household of Demartravion “Trey” Reed gathered over the weekend to honor the 21-year-old Delta State College scholar who was discovered hanging earlier this month on his faculty campus.
On Saturday, September 27, family and friends of Reed’s packed the Plentiful Life Meeting of The Apostolic Religion church in Grenada, Mississippi, to honor him in tributes, poems, and music throughout an emotional and regal funeral.
With many wearing hues of blue, the church was standing room solely, and attendees included the superintendent of the Grenada college district and the president of Delta State College, who mentioned “3,000 hearts broke” the day Reed’s physique was found on campus.
Reed’s sister gave stirring remarks describing her brother as her “rock.”
“Although miles could separate us and time could preserve us aside, know that you just’re all the time near my coronary heart,” she mentioned in a video from the service’s livestream.
“Your laughter, your knowledge, your power; they’re all pillars of my life, and in moments of pleasure and sorrow, you’ve been my rock, my confidante, my information in life,” she continued. “Your presence is a treasure I cherish dearly, and in your absence, I really feel a void that solely your love can fill. Although phrases could fail to specific the depth of affection, allow them to function a testomony to the bond we share, a bond unbreakable.”
She added, “Till we meet once more, know that you’re missed and you’re cherished, and also you’re all the time in my ideas with all my love.”
Reed, who had been a pc science main, was discovered useless on the morning of Monday, September 15, hanging from a tree on Delta State’s campus. Authorities rapidly dominated the case a suicide, however the resolution has been met with skepticism from his household and neighborhood members. Conflicting studies concerning the circumstances of his dying — together with the situation during which his physique was found and attainable confrontations he could have had the night time earlier than — have fueled rising requires solutions.
Civil rights lawyer Ben Crump is now representing the household, and former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s “Know Your Rights Camp Post-mortem Initiative” has pledged to fund a personal post-mortem.
Within the weeks since, college students and supporters have held vigils on campus and in Reed’s hometown, lighting candles and demanding an intensive investigation.
“Trey’s dying evoked the collective reminiscence of a neighborhood that has suffered a historic wound over many, a few years and lots of, many deaths,” civil rights lawyer Crump mentioned in an announcement. “Peace will come solely by attending to the reality.”
