Headline: Erie Black Lives Matter Protestors Run for Political Positions

Author: Madison Kwiecinski, News Editor

Myles Carter, who was tackled by police last summer at a Black Lives Matter rally, announced that he will be running for Erie County Sheriff.

Carter was age 30 last July when he was protesting against police brutality on Bailey Avenue. During the protest, Carter was being interviewed by a WIVB-TV news crew when the news crew caught footage of him being attacked by police officers. Carter, who is a father of five, had his hands in the air as he spoke to the reporter. Carter was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and obstruction, although all the charges were later dropped.

Carter is now one of the ten bi-partisan candidates running for Erie County Sheriff that will be vacated by Sheriff Tim Howard at the end of this year.  According to the most recent available records at the Board of Elections, Carter is listed as a registered Democrat.

Although Carter does not have any prior law enforcement experience, his role as a community leader and activist could provide a fresh perspective to the department.

“Myles has a strategic plan, one that places the focus of corrections from supervision to one of reform,” his campaign stated. “He plans to focus jail spending on programs in the way of drug abuse/addiction, mental health, social work, and skills training.”

Carter has also spoken out publicly against present Erie County Sheriff Tim Howard in several press statements, claiming Howard has not done enough to address issues within county prisons.

“We are dealing with a County Jail system that has been found to be guilty of murder and multiple counts of rape of sexual misconduct,” Carter said. “We must put an end to this insidious culture that has been allowed to fester under current Sheriff Howard and begin working towards restoring incarcerated individuals back into our community.”

Dominique Calhoun, another well-known activist in the Erie area has announced she will be running for Erie County Legislator. Calhoun has experienced traumatizing encounters with the police and attended multiple rallies to protest as a community leader and activist.

Last year, Calhoun spoke about one of her negative experiences, “I was pulled out of my living room barefoot pregnant in the snow for a charge that I was found not guilty of, for a frivolous charge that he had no warrant to run into my home and assault me,” said Dominique Calhoun, who attended the protest.

The incident left her with PTSD, and her daughter with a heart murmur that doctors told her stemmed from the run-in with police. This encounter inspired her to start marching with her fellow neighbors in rallies to bring about change to a flawed system.

Calhoun has completed work for several nonprofit groups and believes her work will translate well towards allocating money for communities in need as she runs for office.

“We had 5,000-plus people that applied for the Small Business grants,” she said. “Less than 20 percent received funding. It’s a pandemic and everyone is struggling. So I believe that that program, or the transparency or the way the funds are allocated, can be made better so that we all can benefit.”

She is running for Erie County’s 1st Legislative District, a seat Howard Johnson has held since 2019.

A number of political activists and reformers are beginning to take steps to bring about change through running for office or attaining influential positions. Dominique Calhoun and Myles Carter are campaigning on a platform of reform and hoping to make meaningful and impactful change.

Photo credits: Thomas O’Neil-White

(from L-R) Dominique Calhoun, Myles Carter, and Carter’s daughter