Stockton Marchers Take to Streets to Remember the life of Alex Mahan , Tsega Tsegay was murdered the same day
Alex Mahan, a participant in both Occupy Stockton and Oakland, was killed in a drive by shooting.
Tsega was beaten to death by her husband.She called Occupy her Family and we will never forget her.
Close to 100 comrades from both the bay area and the central valley choose to mark his passing with a spirited march through Stockton in August, holding the streets and remembering his life as well as decrying the violence of the police and the inter-community violence in poor and communities of color. Please view the videos on this post to see footage from the march. While Alex’s passing is tragic, the fact that friends, family, and comrades choose to remember him by taking back their streets in both a joyful and confrontational way shows that there are still many who will continue the struggle that Alex was apart.
WATCH THIS GREAT VIDEO
To fallen Comrades…
Two of our comrades were violently murdered, Tsega Tsegay and Alex Mahan.
Alex was involved with not only the revolutionary group TAC, or Tactical Action Committee, but also militant actions in Stockton against the police murder of James Rivera Jr. in 2010. TAC is a current and group from within Occupy Oakland that includes young people, largely of color, from Oakland that was formed out of the strikes, riots, and occupation of Oscar Grant Plaza. The group would go on to organize various actions, including weekly ‘Fuck the Police’ marches as well as inspire a new generation of Oakland revolutionaries. Alex deserves to be remembered for his involvement in the struggle and his contribution to revolutionary activity in the Central Valley area. The coming together of comrades and community members in the Stockton area to support this comrade, his revolutionary project, as well as call for an end to crime in poor and working class areas, shows not only the level in which everyday people see the need for a massive social transformation of everyday life, but also a deep desire to better the conditions in which they are living in. It also shows a belief that only through their our own actions and relationships can such a change become possible. In this, Alex gives us a final gift, the joy of once again coming together and holding the streets against our enemies and for ourselves.
On Tuesday night, Tsega was beaten to death by her husband. We remember Tsega as such a loving person, she was vibrant, enthusiastic, a constant and unforgettable presence in our camp at OG Plaza. When things were hard at the camp, Tsega would still be running up on the stage and dancing singing and laughing, and telling everyone she loved them. She called Occupy her Family and we will never forget her. Our bitterness, sorrow, grief, and rage run strong. We know Tsega’s murder is part of the way our society works – through terrorizing and murdering women everywhere. Tsega was not just the victim of a bad man, she was the victim of a violent, patriarchal society that destroys the lives of women, transpeople, queers, people of color, the poor, and everyone else who is not rich, white and a (cis) man. We call this system of gender violence ‘patriarchy’, but it doesn’t matter what you call it, what matters is if you are willling to get up every day and fight it.
Alex Mahan, a Stockton comrade, was killed in a driveby shooting the same evening. Everyone remembers Alex as very kind, 
energetic, and totally committed to the struggle we have all been building together. He never missed an opportunity to fight for the world he believed in. We all remember him coming up with the Stockton crew, to join us in Oakland, often with his Anonymous Mask. He and his comrades planned on how to bring the struggle to Stockton, which they did! He was an unwavering comrade and friend and will be painfully missed. Like Tsega, Alex’s murder was not just the result of a few bad people. It was the result of a society structured on violence, a society where brown and black young men are murdered every day with no notice from society at large. It was the result of a violent economic system which forces whole communities into deprivation, with no options but to fight each other, and a violent political system that leaves us in constant fear of incarceration or death at the hands of the police and the state. These structural forms of violence are the foundation of the violence we experience every day, the violence that took Alex from us.
May the memories of our fallen comrades be fuel for our fire – fuel that helps us burn down this disgusting system that’s taken you from us and build a better one, together. You committed yourselves to this struggle and we will continue with you in our hearts always.
Related articles
- 2 Occupy Comrades Murdered This Week – Tsega and Alex (indybay.org)
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