TJ Hickey supporters march on ten year anniversary

Supporters of Aboriginal teen Thomas "TJ" Hickey will march to NSW Parliament House on Friday to mark the 10th anniversary of his death while fleeing from police.

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Members of the Redfern Aboriginal community march through the streets of Redfern in memory of dead teenager Thomas 'TJ' Hickey in 2004 (Getty/AFP).

Supporters of teenager Thomas "TJ" Hickey are calling for an apology from the NSW government over the boy's death 10 years ago.

It sparked riots in the inner Sydney suburb of Redfern after the 17-year-old was thrown off his bike and impaled on a fence on February 14, 2004.

TJ's family and members of the indigenous community blamed police for chasing the teenager to his death but an inquest later cleared the officers involved of any wrongdoing.

Marchers on Friday call on the NSW government to apologise for his death and for a fresh coronial inquest to be launched.

Ray Jackson, from the Indigenous Social Justice Association, says up to 1000 people will march on Friday from the Waterloo fence on which TJ was impaled to state parliament.

TJ's mother Gail and her daughters and grandchildren will also be among those commemorating his death.

"This is a bad time for Gail," Mr Jackson told AAP on Thursday.

"About a week before (every anniversary of her son's death), she virtually turns her phone off.

"But she'll be there early tomorrow."


1 min read

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Updated

Source: AAP, SBS


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