Hundreds gather to celebrate the life of Dontre Hamilton five years after his death

Resilience was the watchword Saturday as family and friends of the late Dontre Hamilton gathered to remember his life, nearly five years after he was killed.

Hundreds of supporters turned out for the fifth-annual Dontre Day at the Wisconsin Black Historical Society. The event featured music, food and an opportunity to celebrate a man who symbolizes both tragedy and inspiration.

Hamilton was killed April 30, 2014, after a Starbucks employee called the police on him for sleeping in Red Arrow Park. Hamilton, who suffered from schizophrenia, was shot 14 times by a Milwaukee police officer. The officer was fired for his actions leading up to the shooting, but not for his use of force. He was not prosecuted, leading the family to seek changes in the way use-of-force cases are handled by the city. 

As part of that effort, and one to increase awareness about mental illness, the Hamilton family has held Dontre Day each year around the weekend of his death.

As part of the event, Sa'Aire Salton of MHA Wellness Clinic staffed a table offering resources about mental illness. 

Hamilton was her client and Salton said she's been looking for a way to honor him ever since his death.

"A lot of times, people are self-medicating and suffering in silence," she said. "I'm just glad we're talking about mental illness and talking about it aloud."

People also are still talking about the issues that led to Hamilton's death, including poor police-community relationships.

Community organizer Jeff Roman said the media is partly to blame for that dynamic.

"For all the negative stuff we hear about, there's a lot of positive stuff happening," he said. "How the media portrays community, I think that feeds bias and bias feeds fear."

Another issue, WNOV radio host Keyon Jackson-Malone said, was removing the residency requirement from city jobs.

Gone are the days when people grew up with the person who would police their neighborhood, he said.

Student Minister Muhammad Williams of Muhammad Mosque No. 3 agreed.

"Some parts of the police force don't see themselves as part of the community, they see themselves as an occupying force," he said.

Still, he said the Hamilton family has "transformed tragedy into triumph."

"What the family has done is not just for Dontre but for every black man and woman who has been killed by law enforcement," he said. "They have been so relentless for their son, for the cause of justice."

U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, who also showed up to support the family, said Dontre Hamilton's death was tragic but "emblematic of the social unrest we've had in this city and in the country."

Moore also commended the family for keeping Dontre's memory alive with activism.

"Maria has been a symbol of resilience, and that's why it's important to celebrate every year — so we don't forget," Moore said of Maria Hamilton, Dontre Hamilton's mother.

Maria Hamilton now runs Mothers for Justice United, a nonprofit that provides services to people who experience tragedy and stigma from racism. 

She said she's working toward the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream of a world in which people are valued for the content of their character and not the color of their skin.

"He expected people (to work) to make it a reality for all people," she said. "I will continue to do that and motivate others."

Her son, Nate Hamilton, echoed that: "It's encouraging to me and my family, and I hope it encourages the community. We want to continue to show people who Dontre really was."

Maria Hamilton said if her son could see what they've accomplished, he'd be proud:

"He'd say 'Ma, you did a good job .... That's why I love my family.'"

MHA has resources available for mental illness on their website and email address, wellnessclinic@mhawisconsin.org. Contact Talis Shelbourne at (414) 223-5261 or tshelbourn@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @talisseer and Facebook at @talisseer.