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Prairie View A&M's new historical marker honors alumna Sandra Bland's life and legacy
Link to tweet
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/New-historical-marker-honors-Sandra-Bland-s-17181990.php?utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=socialflow&utm_source=twitter.com
Seven years after the momentous traffic stop that sparked Sandra Bland’s arrest, and ultimately, her death, Prairie View officials this week unveiled a historical marker honoring her life.
Bland, a 28-year-old Naperville, Ill. native, had recently moved to Texas to start a new job at Prairie View A&M University, her alma mater. She was pulled over in July 2015 for a minor traffic violation.
The stop grew heated after Department of Public Safety Trooper Brian Encinia asked Bland to put out a cigarette she was smoking. Video of the encounter captured him brandishing a stungun in her face and threatening “I will light you up.”
Bland died by suicide in jail several days later. After video of the traffic stop became public, it brought nationwide attention down on Waller County and the Texas Department of Public Safety. The scandal raised new questions about the value and safety of discretionary traffic stops.
Bland, a 28-year-old Naperville, Ill. native, had recently moved to Texas to start a new job at Prairie View A&M University, her alma mater. She was pulled over in July 2015 for a minor traffic violation.
The stop grew heated after Department of Public Safety Trooper Brian Encinia asked Bland to put out a cigarette she was smoking. Video of the encounter captured him brandishing a stungun in her face and threatening “I will light you up.”
Bland died by suicide in jail several days later. After video of the traffic stop became public, it brought nationwide attention down on Waller County and the Texas Department of Public Safety. The scandal raised new questions about the value and safety of discretionary traffic stops.