An angry trend continues in Greece as another Roma child died after a police chase

Friends, relatives, and classmates of Christos Michalopoulos gathered outside a church close to Thebes, a city in central Greece, on November 11 to say goodbye to the 17-year-old who passed away after a police chase. Clad in all black, several of them sobbed as they held onto one another in silence. There was a sense of shock in the air. Many of the family members were dizzy. A few passed out and needed to be hauled away for treatment or kept upright. A small group of people yelled his name as the coffin was being carried out of the church, mimicking the sound of students signing their names on an attendance sheet: "Christos Michalopoulos! Present-day! After being chased by police, Michalopoulos shot himself in the collarbone and died. This is the third time in less than three years that a Roma adolescent has died in events involving Greek police. Nationwide, there have been demonstrations, pleas for justice, and run-ins with the law since that terrible Saturday.