A Gathering And March For Miguel Estrella In Pittsfield Sunday

A gathering and march is taking place in Pittsfield on Sunday afternoon for Miguel Estrella, who was shot by a Pittsfield Police Officer responding to what was said to be a mental health call on his behalf two weeks ago. Estrella died from the gunshot wounds.

Estrella's friends and family are looking for answers and they want the City of Pittsfield to improve how it responds to people in a mental health crisis. They are also calling on the Pittsfield Police Department to release the names of the two officers who made a second trip to the home of 22-year-old Miguel Estrella, which eventually ended with one of the officers shooting Estrella. 

A post on the Manos Unidas Multicultural Educational Cooperative Facebook page proclaims that Estrella "...was shot and killed by Police when he should have been treated by a mental health crisis team." The post also says that Miguel was a strong community member who served his Westside community in so many ways, including building homes with Habitat for Humanity.

The gathering and march entitled "Justice For Miguel" will start at the intersection of Columbus Street and North Street on Sunday at 4:00 PM. The march will proceed to Park Square. There will be Spanish translation provided at Park Square for those who need it.

The event is being sponsored by Central Berkshire Habitat For Humanity, the Berkshire branch of the NAACP, Bridge, Wildflower Alliance, Invest in Pittsfield, and Roots & Mustard Seeds Inc.

This is directly from the Manos Unidas Multicultural Educational Cooperative Facebook page:

In response to this tragedy, our coalition of movement building organizations alongside Marisol, her twin sister, Maribel, and his sister, Elina are demanding the following -

• That the PPD release the names of the officers involved in the shooting
• That Pittsfield adopt one of many successful models for a 24/7 peer-led mental health crisis response fully separate from the Pittsfield Police Department
• That Mayor Tyer submit a budget for FY23 to the Pittsfield City Council which immediately and dramatically reduces the funding of the Pittsfield Police Department and reallocates that money to mental health support, youth jobs and mentorship programs, community-based violence prevention, affordable housing, and economic justice programs like a universal basic income for low-income residents

A GoFundMe page has also been set up. More than $20,000 has been raised thus far. You can donate HERE.

The Office of Pittsfield Mayor Linda Tyer sent out this advisory Friday afternoon:

Please be advised that there will be multiple road closures in effect on Sunday, April 10 near and throughout downtown Pittsfield for the march for Miguel Estrella. Beginning at 2:45 p.m. the intersection of Onota Street and Woodbine Avenue and Warriner and View streets will be closed to thru traffic. From 3-6 p.m. additional closures will include Onota Street, Columbus Avenue, North Street, and Park Square. Please seek alternate routes for travel during this time.