Belmont 'Not Immune' From Racial Violence: Henry Tapia Vigil

BELMONT, MA — Cushing Square was packed with hundreds of somber faces on Thursday evening as Belmont residents and friends mourned Henry Tapia and took a public stand against racial violence.

Tapia was killed on Tuesday in a hit-and-run on Upland Road that stemmed from a confrontation between him and another driver, identified as Dean Kapsalis. According to the Middlesex District Attorney's office, Kapsalis shouted racial slurs at Tapia before hitting him with his car and dragging him for a short time.

Thursday night's vigil was full of signs that read "Black Lives Matter" alongside printed photos of Tapia. Tapia was a father of three — his children and family attended the vigil, standing with Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and local and state legislators.

"Hate has no home here," Ryan said to the crowd.

Speakers at the vigil called for continued activism in Belmont, beyond the night's vigil to ensure racial violence is not welcome in the town.

"We need to continue to honor him by getting involved," a speaker at the vigil said.

The Belmont Human Rights Commission issued a statement for the vigil:

"This incident further shows a light that violence and racial hatred against Black and brown people are far too common in this country. The actions taken against Mr. Tapia shows that Belmont is not immune from the effects of violence and hatred. The Belmont Human Rights Commission will continue to fight for racial justice and equality," the statement reads in part.

Tapia's named was chanted through the square along with a "Black Lives Matter" chant, led by the Freedom Fighters Coalition of Boston. The chants were similar to the those that echoed down avenues from New York City to Minneapolis this summer as people chanted George Floyd's name, Breonna Taylor's name and countless other victims of police brutality who became the faces of a movement against racial violence.

In the wake of Tapia's death the Belmont community showed up in force to support Tapia's family. The Belmont group, Community Organized for Solidarity, is collecting donations for Tapia's family and a GoFundMe page has already raised over $30,000 for Tapia's family. The GoFundMe page was started by Danny Garcia according to the page biography.

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher contributed to this report.