#BlackHistoryReimagined, Day 24
In this series, I re-imagine the lives of black folks gone too soon.
#BlackHistoryReimagined, Day 24
Aiyana Stanley-Jones was born on July 20, 2002 in Detroit. As a young child, she was a curious girl who spent a lot of time with her grandmother, mostly watching television or talking. She would often fall asleep on the couch while hanging out late with her grandmother.
In the wee hours of Sunday, May 16, 2010, Stanley-Jones had fallen asleep on the couch. Around 12:40 a.m., police raided the home looking for her aunt’s boyfriend who had been identified as a suspect in a crime a few nights prior. Members of Detroit’s SWAT team fired a flash grenade through the front window hitting the couch, subsequently setting fire to Stanley-Jones. Her grandmother quickly responded pulling her to the ground to roll her about frantically to ward off flames. Police then entered the home and found the suspect without further injury. After several attempts to pursue criminal charges and civil settlements against the city and its officers, Stanley-Jones was finally awarded a mid six-figure settlement which she plans to use to pay for her college education. While she has not completely recovered from her burn wounds, she is an active 17-year-old. She has a high interest in braiding hair and plans to attend cosmetology school, followed by business management studies. While not necessarily seeking to be an activist, she does intend to remain in Detroit as she hopes that her visible wounds will continue to serve as reminder that raids are not effective measures of pursuing suspects of criminal activity.
