by Thousands of people gathered at a vigil on October 31 for indigenous teenager Cassius Turvey, who was allegedly assaulted on his way home from school in Perth and later died of his injuries.
Natasha Collard’s footage shows the crowd at Weip Park in the Midlands suburb of Perth and Cassius’s mother, Mechelle Turvey, speaking to the service. Turvey said, “So many people have said so much about Cassius, but my son is my oldest.”
More than three thousand people showed up for the vigil, NITV valued.
Cassius, a teenager from Noongar Yamatji, was reportedly beaten with a metal pole on his way home from school with a group of friends in Middle Swan on October 13. ABC reported. The 15-year-old died in hospital 10 days after the attack, having sustained severe head injuries.
A 21-year-old man was charged with murder in connection with the case, the ABC She said.
Aboriginal leaders condemned what they called a “cowardly racist act against an innocent child” and urged authorities to listen to their concerns, according to NITV.
Noongar’s elder, Uncle Ben Taylor, said Cassius’s death caused tremendous pain in the community. “All our hearts are saddened today, crying out in pain,” he said during the wake, which also included choir and dance performances. NITV She said. Credit: Natasha Collard via Storyful
Video transcription
[CHATTER]
MECHELLE TURVEY: Cassie tonight. Thank you for this.
Cassius was called by his older brother. Jonah, where are you? He raises his hand.
JAY TURVEY: Right here.
MECHELLE TURVEY: That’s his big brother, Jay. My husband and I. Rest in peace, Sam. We spent years trying to name this guy and we wanted a really strong name.
This would represent our son and the first name we thought of was Samson, because my husband’s name was Sam. But then we thought, no, it’s a lousy name. No, no, keep it. And every night, my husband and I would sit in the living room with the children’s name books, and leaf through, leaf through. We would argue.
And then one night, Cassie’s older brother Jay got tired of us and said, take those books away, you old fools.
His name is right in front of you. You are blind. The strongest name you could ever give my brother is Cassius. As in Cassius Clay, aka Muhammad Ali. And I would like to thank my son, Jay, for giving him that name, because that name is just a name on his birth certificate, but that name represents Cassius at T. Strength. He was strong. And as Muhammad Ali has done all his life, he wasn’t just strong in boxing in the ring. But he brought his strong words into the community and into the world. So many people have said so much about Cassius, but my son is my oldest. And I thank you.
