A major investigative podcast series launching next week will examine one of the most troubling unsolved cases from Seattle's 2020 Capitol Hill Occupied Protest: the fatal shooting of sixteen-year-old Antonio Mays Jr.
The eight-part series, titled "We Keep Us Safe," represents a collaborative investigation by NPR's Embedded, KUOW, and The Seattle Times. The premiere is scheduled for Friday, June 11, 2026, and will be available on major podcast platforms including the NPR App, Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, and Spotify.
Antonio Mays Jr. traveled a thousand miles in the summer of 2020 to participate in the racial justice movement that had captivated his generation. He arrived in Seattle during the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest, commonly known as CHOP. Less than a week after his arrival, he was shot and killed within the occupied zone. The case remains unsolved.
The investigation is led by Sydney Brownstone of The Seattle Times and Will James of KUOW, working in partnership with NPR's Embedded team. Alongside reporter David Gutman, the journalists have tracked down key figures and eyewitnesses from the night of the shooting.
According to the announcement, the series will surface crucial evidence that has never been made public. This represents a significant development in a case that has remained without resolution for nearly six years.
The Capitol Hill Occupied Protest emerged during a period of intense national focus on racial justice and police accountability. The zone, which occupied several blocks in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, operated with minimal police presence and became a focal point for both supporters and critics of the protest movement.
The death of Antonio Mays Jr., a teenager who had traveled across the country to join what he believed was a historic movement, raised profound questions about safety, accountability, and justice within the occupied zone. The collaborative investigation aims to provide answers to questions that have lingered since that summer.
The partnership between local and national news organizations underscores the significance of the case and the complexity of the investigation. By combining resources and expertise, the journalists have been able to access witnesses and evidence that may shed new light on the circumstances surrounding Antonio's death.
Listeners interested in following the investigation can subscribe to Embedded through their preferred podcast platform. The series will roll out over multiple weeks, with each episode building on the previous installment to construct a comprehensive picture of what happened during those tumultuous days in Seattle.
