Family of man killed by police in Eagan files civil rights suit; protesters want case reopened
Advocates push for review of the killing of Isak Aden
This story comes to you from Sahan Journal, a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to providing authentic news reporting about Minnesota's new immigrants and refugees. MPR News is a partner with Sahan Journal and will be sharing stories between SahanJournal.com and MPRNews.org.
By Hibah Ansari | Sahan Journal
For Sumaya Aden, the demand that officials reopen the case of her brother Isak, killed a year ago by police in Eagan, the commemoration of Somali Independence Day and the Black Lives Matter movement all are part of the same struggle for unity and justice.
On Wednesday evening, the eve of the 23-year-old Somali-American’s death, his sister led about 150 protesters from the Eagan Outlet Mall, shutting down traffic on Highway 13, to the site of his death. The march also honored the 60th year of Somalia’s independence.
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The protestors demanded Isak Aden’s case be reopened, after the Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said in November that the police were justified in using deadly force.
On Thursday, lawyers for Aden’s family said they’d filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the cities of Bloomington, Burnsville, Eagan, and Edina as well as the police officers directly involved in the incident, calling it “another tragic display of an over-aggressive, over-militarized police response to a Black man.”
“Whether we’re fighting back home in Somalia, fighting in Eagan, Minnesota, after 60 years of independence in Somalia, we still continue to fight — not only for us, but for the larger community that we’re in,” Sumaya Aden said in an interview with Sahan Journal before the suit was filed.
‘Not the only ones traumatized’
At Wednesday’s protest, cheers erupted on a public sidewalk near the Eagan mall after Sumaya Aden acknowledged Somalia’s Independence Day. Before the march began, the Somali national anthem was played from a Subaru leading protesters, while the Somali attendees sang along. “Sing it with your chest,” Aden told the protesters.
“I wanted this to be, honestly, a day of unity and to honor our ancestors and the strength and resiliency they left us with,” she said.
At this time in prior years, the Somali Independence Day festival is usually held on Lake Street. But since the area was badly affected by the protests for George Floyd, Sumaya said she instead wanted to hold a rally in Eagan to recognize the resilience of Somali youth fighting for the Black Lives Matter movement.
“I’ve seen the Somali youth firsthand at the front lines for George Floyd and for my brother,” Aden said. “I want to give the youth that have been at the forefront of this a platform.”
“We’re not the only ones traumatized by this,” she said of her family. “[The Somali] community has been affected by this and our voices have been drowned out.”
An organizer from the Minnesota Immigrants Rights Action Committee who is originally from Kenya, also spoke at the protest.
“I’m a fellow East African and I think it’s really important for East Africans to come together,” said the organizer, who was identified only by her first name, Daisy. “And I’m so happy that we’re in the suburbs and we’re going to disrupt suburban lives.”
The rally was meant to highlight disparate police violence in the suburbs, in solidarity with south Minneapolis’ Lake Street community, Aden said. “Now that George Floyd’s case is bringing light to a lot of other cases, we’ve seen so many other cases get reopened because of public pressure.”
‘No way you can cover it up’
Aden began seeking justice for her brother immediately after he died. She said she’s continuously been in “fight mode” the entire year.
Isak Aden was shot and killed by police last July after a dispute with his ex-girlfriend, who called 911 when she saw Isak was carrying a gun.
Isak Aden was sitting on a sidewalk while he spoke with a police negotiator over the phone. Officers shot three flash-bangs and six non-lethal rounds. After he reached for his gun, which sat about 18 inches away, the police shot and killed him with 11 bullets.
Despite the fact that her family has not been able to fully process the death of Isak, Sumaya Aden said that has pushed her to show support for other families who have lost loved ones to police violence — many of whom attended and spoke at the protest.
“I’ve gotten the support that I’ve given out in return from people in the movement,” she said.
When the protesters arrived at the spot where Isak was shot and killed on Seneca Road, Aden pointed at the bullet holes still left behind on the side of a nearby building. She promised the group she wouldn’t cry.
“No matter how much paint you put on, no matter how much spackle you use, these bullet holes are still here,” Aden said. “This city has blood on its hands, and there’s no way you can cover it up.”