Watch. Listen. Geneva Reed-Veal, Mother of Sandra Bland, Delivers a Powerful Speech at the Congressional Caucus On Black Women And Girls.

Sandra Bland Geneva Reed-Veal

Created by Congresswomen Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ), Robin Kelly (IL) and Yvette D. Clarke (NY), the Congressional Caucus On Black Women And Girls, the first of its kind, hopes to address issues that are specific to black women and girls. The caucus was petitioned by a committee that includes Sharon Cooper, the sister of Sandra Bland.

Bland was found dead in a jail cell in 2015, after a traffic violation arrest near the campus of Texas A&M University. Officials stated that her cause of death was suicide, but friends and family of Bland continue to refute these claims.

Bland’s mother Geneva Reed-Veal recently delivered a powerful speech before the Congressional Caucus On Black Women And Girls. Reed-Veal stressed the importance of recognizing young black women like her daughter who have also died in police custody.

“I am here representing the mothers who have lost children as we go on about our daily lives,” she said. “When the cameras and the lights are gone, our babies are dead. And life goes on. So I’m here asking you to wake up. Wake up!”