Several dozen people on Sunday paid respects to an homeless man who was killed as city of Atlanta workers cleared a homeless encampment on Jan. 16.
Grief and frustration hung heavy in the air as friends, family and housing advocates stopped by Willie A. Watkins Funeral Home to honor Cornelius Taylor during a public viewing. Some silently kept watch over his open casket, while others reminisced.
Atlanta police are investigating Taylor’s death at an encampment in the 300 block of Old Wheat Street, near the Downtown Connector and the King Center. According to witnesses, a Department of Public Works construction vehicle struck him while he was in his tent.
Taylor was 46 years old.
His cousins Antionette Thomas, 50, and Anthony Heard, 61, were among the first visitors. They had not seen Taylor since he was a kid and, decades later, they peered down at Taylor’s open casket in silence.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Thomas said, recalling her initial reaction to the news of Taylor’s death. “They need a better solution to helping homeless people.”
Heard said the last time he saw his cousin was on the streets in downtown Atlanta when Taylor was 18 or 19. They talked only briefly, but Heard remembered him with fondness.
“He had a big heart and he was family-oriented,” Thomas said.
Debra Robinson, 61, called Taylor one of her closest friends. They met in 1994 when they were both homeless and attended rehab together.
“He was helpful, kindhearted and didn’t like to see people without,” said Robinson, who recalled Taylor often fixed her car.
In a Jan. 27 incident report, Atlanta Police Officer Jonathan Allen said he found Taylor waving in distress after an “earth-moving machine” swept up debris at the encampment. Allen noted in the report a bloody nose but no other physical injuries. Soon after, Taylor “declined quickly,” the report said.
Credit: Ashley Ahn
Credit: Ashley Ahn
Mawuli Davis, the civil rights attorney representing Taylor’s family, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution the preliminarily findings played down Taylor’s “substantial” injuries. He added Taylor’s family members are “shocked and disappointed” at the report.
The day before his death, Robinson said she took Taylor to his tent to rest.
“Go lie down, I’ll see you tomorrow,” Robinson recalled telling Taylor.
The next day, she was stunned to hear of her friend’s death. Robinson added she was infuriated by what she described as a lack of accountability by police for the fatal incident.
“I took him to his tent to lay down and he was not drugged up or sick,” she said. “He was just asleep.”
Community members and formerly homeless people also attended the public viewing in support of Taylor, including 53-year-old Desiree Simmons, who called for more accountability in Taylor’s death.
Credit: Ashley Ahn
Credit: Ashley Ahn
“I know what it’s like to be homeless, because I’ve been there, and for him to die the way he did is just terrible,” she said.
A funeral service will be held Monday at 11 a.m. at Ebenezer Baptist Church. The family said it created a funeral fund and was accepting donations online to support the Old Wheat Street community.
Atlanta City Councilwoman Andrea L. Boone silently sat alone in one of the seats facing the open casket. She said she opted to pay her respects in the more intimate setting of the public viewing.
“My heart hurts for him and his family,” Boone said. “I came to let the family know I care and if there is anything I can do to ease the pain.”
Boone said the housing crisis must be a priority for the city of Atlanta, as well as expanding mental health resources for all.
“We have got to do better to take care of our unhoused residents,” she said. “Hopefully, his life was not in vain.”
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