Kenneth Chamberlain Jr.

Kenneth Chamberlain Jr.'s father, Kenneth Sr., had accidentally triggered his medical alert pendant early one morning five years ago. A former Marine and corrections officer, Kenneth Sr. had bipolar disorder, as well as arthritis and respiratory illness. When the medical-alert agency did not get a response from Mr. Chamberlain, it dispatched the police to check on him. Ninety minutes later, after he had been taunted with racial slurs, according to an audiotape, and subdued by both a Taser weapon and beanbag rounds, Mr. Chamberlain, 68, was shot and killed by a bullet from an officer’s .40-caliber pistol. The shooting of Mr. Chamberlain on Nov. 19, 2011, which the police say was in self-defense, came on the eve of a seeming outbreak of high-profile police shootings of black men across the United States. It also predated a growing debate about police tactics involving emotionally disturbed people.

Chamberlain Jr. has taken up the legal fight to defend his father's honor as well as that of the many families in search of justice due to similar circumstances. Today, Kenneth Chamberlain, Jr. is a skilled human service professional operating as an Employment Case Manager with the Urban League of Westchester’s POWER PROGRAM (Pushing Obstacles With Empowerment & Revitalization.) In this capacity Chamberlain works with individuals who are unable to work due to illnesses that range from medical to mental health and substance abuse. In the past Chamberlain was responsible for overseeing an Attitudinal Job Readiness Training program and was also a Work Experience Program Developer; in that capacity his job was to build relationships with local organizations and institutions, as well as with the client population he serves. Chamberlain also served as a Director of Job Development, Program Supervisor, and Substance Abuse Counselor at a previous nonprofit organization.

The perspectives Chamberlain developed in his work provided a foundation when he was forced to respond to his father’s death. Since then Chamberlain has been a voice for affecting positive change in Westchester County as well as New York State. Chamberlain is one of the founding members of the Westchester Coalition for Police Reform (WCPR) which consists of community organizations, religious institutions and individuals who share a vision of safe communities, with improved community-police relations and greater police accountability and transparency. Chamberlain is also a member of Families United for Justice which is an organization of family members who either have family members or they themselves have been victims of some sort of police misconduct, brutality, and criminality. Chamberlain also sits on the board of the NYS Civil Liberties Union Lower Hudson Valley Chapter and attends Concordia College in Bronxville, NY where he is pursuing his degree in Behavioral Sciences.

He has done speaking engagements at several colleges and universities Cornell University, Westchester Community College, SUNY Purchase, and Brooklyn College to name a few and whenever asked he participates and has organized several panel discussions around police misconduct, brutality, and criminality. He has received a Certificate of Appreciation for commitment and dedication to community from the Westchester County Board of Legislators, Award for continued service to the City of Mount Vernon, NY from Unity Baptist Tabernacle Church a Champion of the Community award from Westchester Martin Luther King Jr. Institute for Nonviolence, as well as a Proclamation from the New York State Senate. When asked why he does this type of work Chamberlain’s response is simple: “You want for your brother and sister that which you want for yourself, and when I say brother and sister I mean all people because one’s works are more important than ones skin color."