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'Saying his name is the minimum' | 'Stephon Sundays' mission doesn't change even after celebrity tweet

The Clarks have spent two years seeking justice for Stephon Clark. With renewed attention on the case after a Kardashian tweet, they push for action.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Stephon Sundays has been a weekly celebration of Stephon Clark's life.
Together, family and strangers share food and music at Clark's grandmother's home, the same place where he was shot and killed by police in the backyard after they mistook a cell phone for a weapon.

This Sunday though, Clark's mother, Se'Quette Clark, said she remembers her son with an injection of hope, thanks to a tweet by Kim Kardashian West.

"My sense of faith and hope have been renewed," Se'Quette Clark said. "She took her celebrity status, and she made a change."

Kardashian West tweeted a two-year-old petition calling for charges to be brought to the officers involved and a recall for Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert. 

In two days, an additional 20,000 people signed it, which brought renewed international attention to the case that the State Attorney General deemed a justified shooting. Clark said family friend and model, Tiana Parker, was able to bring Kardashian West's attention to Clark's story during a shoot. 

Amid a pandemic, Clark said the world is starting to wake up to racial injustice in America.

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"Now, the world is waking up and smelling the coffee," said Clark. "It's been brewing for 400 years, right? It's been brewing and brewing and brewing, and now, we have to stand up and we had to wake up and smell it. We don't like how it smells, and we're changing it."

This fight for justice has been an every day reality for the Clark family, namely for Stephon Clark's brother Stevante Clark. 

"Saying his name is the minimum," Stevante Clark said of the tweet. 

Stevante Clark said he doesn't dismiss the influence Kardashian had in amplifying his brother's story, but, he believes people showed up to Stephon Sundays because they know the importance of his brother's legacy.

Stevante Clark urged people. including Kardashian West, to help the masses go beyond retweets and link sharing.

"I'm all about actionable items. What are we going to do to prevent more Stephon Clarks, Eric Garners, Tammir Rices, Oscar Grants, so on and so forth? I believe having the right opportunities for our people can prevent these things," he said. 

That rationale is why Stevante Clark said he'll continue hosting Stephon Sundays and his Sac 6 Agenda to bring communities together and push for legislative change, including AB 392: a bill that would limit police to use deadly use of force only when officers or bystanders are in imminent threat of serious harm or death. 

WATCH ALSO: Protesters demand an investigation of the death of U.S. solider Vanessa Guillen

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