Darwin and Alice Springs hold vigils for slain Perth schoolboy Cassius Turvey

The violence was nearly 4000km away but the Territory parents of Aboriginal children felt fear as if the 15-year-old’s blood was spilt in their own home.

Zizi Averill, Amanda Parkinson and Jason Walls

2 min read

November 7, 2022 - 1:30PM

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Candles flickered across Darwin and Alice Springs as part of a national day of action for 15-year-old Cassius Turvey.

The violence was nearly 4000km away but the Territory parents of Aboriginal children felt fear as if the schoolboys’s blood was spilt in their own home.

Larrakia woman and mother Sharna Alley spoke to hundreds of people at the Darwin vigil for the Perth schoolboy on Wednesday.

“As the mother of two sons — two black sons — I’m terrified,” Ms Alley said.

Mother of two Sharna Alley speaks at the #JusticeforCassius vigil. Picture: (A)manda Parkinson

A schoolgirl lights a candle at the #JusticeforCassius vigil. Picture: (A)manda Parkinson

“I’m at a loss in a society where our babies are being racially profiled.

“To make sure our babies can walk home from school, to make sure they can ride their bike, to make sure they can walk the streets with their friends.”

Ms Alley said she saw her own child in Cassius, allegedly murdered after stepping off the bus.

The Perth teen was meant to return home that afternoon to his mother, Mechelle Turvey.

Instead the “jovial” and “kind” teenager spent 10 days in hospital before he died.

Cassius’ mother’s words were read aloud to the Darwin crowd, expressing her love and gratitude to those taking part in the national day of action.

“I am the only one who can get justice for my son. Stand alongside me,” Ms Turvey said.

“I appreciate everyone, but I need to call out for calm.”

In Alice Springs, hundreds gathered across the road from the local courthouse where candles burned for the slain teenager.

Locals spoke of their heartbreak at the death of Cassius and their own fears for loved ones growing up Aboriginal in modern Australia.

The vigil took on an additional poignancy for some, held just stone’s throw from where Coroner Elisabeth Armitage has been dissecting the police shooting death of 19-year-old Warlpiri-Luritja man Kumanjayi Walker in 2019.

Ms Turvey called for the WA government to invest in eliminating youth violence in schools and streets, and reach out to “lost youth” in correctional centres.

The Darwin vigil was among dozens of memorials across Australia as part of a national day of action, with similar memorials in Mparntwe, Alice Springs.

A vigil for slain Noongar teenager, Cassius Turvey, outside the Alice Springs courthouse on November 2, 2022. Picture: Jason Walls

More than 300 people gathered on Larrakia land near the Rapid Creek Footbridge.

Whadjuk and Noonjar man Derek Nannup said it was overwhelming to see the Darwin crowds so far from his WA home.

“It’s been a massive impact throughout my Noonjar boodja, my country, and there’s been a ripple effect across the continent.”

“I only have enough strength in me to say I appreciate all the mob who have turned up.”

Another WA woman said justice was needed for boys such as her relative who was with Cassius the afternoon of the alleged attack.

“I want justice ... because our young men are now damaged and traumatised,” she said.

Gurindji woman and Aboriginal activist Josie Crawshaw said there were “complex issues” in Darwin that which meant parents felt the pain of Cassius’s death more closely.

“We are afraid this event might happen here soon,” Ms Crawshaw said.