“First got it when he was six, didn’t know any tricks/Matter of fact, first time he got on it, he slipped.”

The opening verse of Chicago rapper Lupe Fiasco’s 2006 debut single “Kick, Push” might have been about Tyre Nichols, a California kid who moved to Memphis, who loved to be out on his skateboard. 

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“That’s his passion,” Nichols’ mother, RowVaughn Wells, said earlier this week, in the aftermath of her 29-year-old son’s death due to injuries sustained at a traffic stop by five now-indicted Memphis police officers.

“He’s been skating since he was 6 years old.”

The family had earlier shared a sun-kissed video of Nichols on his board, at various spots around town. 

“Kick, Push” is a song, a paean really, about skateboarding as a source of personal freedom, as both a zone of meditation and a locus for community. 

Nichols’ mother and his stepfather Rodney Wells appeared at a candlelight vigil in their son’s honor on Thursday night at Tobey Skate Park in Midtown, to honor Nichols’ joy and one of the communities he found. 

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“Kick, push” was also one unexpected response in a night of impassioned call and response among the family members, ministers and activists who spoke, and all those who gathered, on a cold, clear Memphis night, the skating apparatus at Tobey ringed with white paper bags lit up by candles and the familiar ka-kunk, ka-kunk, ka-kunk of skaters soundtracking a somber night. 

Self-described local skater and local activist Josh Adams took the megaphone at one point, his board propped up at his right foot, speaking to Nichols’ fellow skaters in the crowd.

“If you don’t feel like an advocate, if you feel like you’re just a skater, find a good way to skate. Get in some good trouble out here,” said Adams.

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“Kick, push!,” someone yelled out. 

Then: “Justice for Tyre! Justice for Memphis!” 

The vigil on Thursday night was planned well before the actions of Thursday afternoon, which included the announcement of indictments, all five officers charged with second-degree murder as well as other related crimes. It included a video statement from Memphis mayor Jim Strickland, clarifying the Friday night release of video of the incident. And it included a written statement from President Joe Biden. 

The vigil then arrived in a moment of anticipation, for what the imminent release of the video will mean for Memphis, and what lies ahead for the path of justice for Nichols and his family. 

Nichols’ parents sat at a table, handwritten cardboard signs at their feet proclaiming “This Must Stop” and “Justice for Tyree.”

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“First of all I’d like to say thank you to every one of you for being here to support my son. My family is grief-stricken right now,” said Nichols’ mother. 

“I don’t speak very well in front of a crowd. I just want to say this,” she continued. “When that tape comes out tomorrow, it’s going to be horrific. I didn’t see it. But from what I hear, it’s going to be horrific. But I want each and every one of you to protest in peace. I don’t want us burning up our city, tearing up our streets, because that’s not what my son stood for. And if you guys are here for me and Tyre, then you will protest peacefully.”

While the outside world and some officials in Memphis may fear the worst, the anger expressed on this loving night was channeled toward effecting change. 

“We gather in this moment with great rage, with great pain and with great lament,” said Rev. Vahisha Hasan in her opening prayer.

“We ask you God to empower us to make Memphis the home that we deserve,” Hasan said. “We deserve a city that honors our life. We deserve a city that values our breath.” 

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As the roughly hour-long vigil wound down, activist Hunter Demster addressed the fears of unrest. 

“Systemic changes. That is the key word. I think protesting in Memphis, it’s always been nonviolent and peaceful,” said Demster. “Until the police show up. We don’t have a problem keeping it peaceful and nonviolent. Let’s see how these police react.” 

If justice is a necessary predicate for peace, perhaps this has been a good start, with the dismissal and then indictment of the five officers, and the strong suggestion that more is needed and more is coming. 

Perhaps it’s the heightened response of city leaders spurred and spooked by the aftermath of George Floyd. Perhaps it’s the consequence of new leadership at the Memphis Police Department and especially the Shelby County District Attorney’s office. Perhaps it’s just a signal that this incident is too stark to allow anything else. 

However you credit the swift, sharp action of recent days, the response so far has been what most would want in a moment that no one does. But what comes next?