The 3/20 Coalition will gather three times in July to host events in support of Black Mental Health Awareness Month and racial justice movements.
The group will host sponsored teach-ins at the Allen Street Gates to educate community members on the challenges facing the Black community. The events, scheduled for three Sundays this month — July 12, July 19, and July 26 — will each feature unique themes, including mental health and Black women and trans awareness. Coinciding with the group’s name, each teach-in will last three hours and 20 minutes.
Attendees are encouraged to wear face masks, bring water, and social distance as best they can.
The 3/20 Coalition is a local advocacy group that formed following the death of State College resident Osaze Osagie. Osagie, a 29-year-old Black man, was fatally shot by a State College police officer serving a mental health warrant in March 2019. After an investigation by state police, Centre County District Attorney Bernie Cantorna concluded the shooting was justified, finding that the officer who killed Osagie was in a life-or-death situation when Osagie charged at him with a knife in a narrow hallway and another officer’s Taser failed to work.
Since then, the coalition has hosted multiple protests against police brutality and in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, as well as advocating for police reform measures in the borough.
Weekly updates, schedules, and sign suggestions for the teach-in events will be posted on the 3/20 Coalition’s Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
