HIGH POINT, N.C. (WGHP) -- Demonstrators marched in downtown High Point on Saturday afternoon, demanding justice for Fred Cox Jr.
"The fight has just begun, and I won't give up. I shall not give up," said Tenica Shannon, Cox's mother. "They tried to say my son was in a gang. What gang 'cause I'm his big homie...and I have been for 18 long years," Shannon said.
Local activist Reverend Gregory Drumwright and Civil Rights Attorney Benjamin Crump led the "No Justice, No Peace" march in High Point.
"The fact that George Floyd's killing by a police officer was unjust and unnecessary. The same was with Fred Cox. The more we find out about the manner in which he was taken from this planet, the more we know we have to fight for him to get accountability and for him to get justice," Crump said.
The 18-year-old was shot and killed by a plain-clothed Davidson County deputy at a funeral service being held in a High Point church last year.
During the service, there was a drive-by shooting. People in a vehicle opened fire on people at the church. Police say more than 70 rounds were fired. In June, a grand jury decided not to indict the deputy.
Despite the ruling by the grand jury, protestors say they will continue the fight.
"150 years after our so-called emancipation, my people are still being slain on the street, and Fred Cox was just one of the million African Americans being oppressed to this day," said Kyliak Brockington, a 16-year old activist.
The families of Breonna Taylor, Daunte Wright and Andrew Brown all attended the rally to show support. They say it's important to stand with the Cox Family.
"Where we treat all of our citizens equally, and where police respect all of our citizens regardless of their skin color," Crump said.
Meanwhile, Cox’s family has a message: "You see a determined mom that's not going to give up. Fred Cox's life matters," Shannon said.
She says three days after the grand jury made the decision not to indict the deputy, Cox's dad died of a heart attack. She says they normally wouldn't communicate, but two hours before he passed, he sent her a video of him crying, and he said he couldn't take the pain from grieving his son.
Shannon says the father and son are now buried next to each other.
The family plans to file a civil lawsuit and will continue to hold events like Saturday's march in High Point.
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