It has been nearly three months since Nolan Wells went to a party with several friends on an island off the coast of Mississippi on July 4, and we still have no idea why he died on that trip instead of returning with his travelling companions. Last week, a Mississippi grand jury determined that there was no evidence of criminal wrongdoing in Wells’ death, and that there was no evidence that his so-called friend had anything to do with his death. And there are certainly people invested in putting Wells’ story to bed once and for all. Unfortunately for those people, that’s not how it works. We don’t just stop calling for justice and transparency because some court system said there was no justice to be had. 

And that’s why, on Monday, students at a high school in Wisconsin staged a walkout on Wells’ behalf.

According to CBS 58, students at Wauwatosa West High School in Wauwatosa, Wis., organized the walkout and marched from the school to the city’s Firefly Park.

“The justice that he deserves, it wasn’t there,” one student told CBS. “Obviously, they let them walk away, and I feel that wasn’t right, so I’m just here to show my support for the family of Nolan Wells and for himself…just so I can contribute.”

Look, we can expect that many people, mostly white people (and Brandon Tatum), will say these kids are misguided and that they’ve fallen for a hoax perpetuated by race-baiting sensationalists, but the fact is that this walkout is only one example of Black people’s unwillingness to let Wells’ story go. We’re not going to stop saying his name just because some people are more invested in silencing Wells’ supporters than in actually getting to the bottom of what happened to him. 

It’s still “Justice for Nolan Wells” until his family, his community, and the rest of us are satisfied that truth and justice are being appropriately pursued. We won’t accept “he just died” as a conclusion, and if he wasn’t a young, Black man, white America wouldn’t either. 

SEE ALSO:

Nolan Wells: White ‘Friends’ Launch GiveSendGo Fundraiser For Themselves

Nolan Wells: Legacy News Outlets Seems To Be Victim Blaming