“I can’t breathe…” – Eric Garner, 2014
The I Can’t Breathe Movement came into view after the death of an African-American man named Eric Garner in New York City last July of 2014. Garner died because an NYPD cop named Daniel Pantaleo put him on a stranglehold, a Judo technique, while they were arresting him. There were a lot of footages regarding the incident that has spread nationwide and has captured plenty of attention.
Garner was arrested for alleged selling loosies or single cigarettes from packs that have no tax stamps. He appealed to the cops that he was not selling any loosie and stated that he’s already drained of being harassed, the officers of NYPD tried to arrest him. Things escalated quickly. Officer Pantaleo put his hands on the accused. However, the accused denied cooperating by pulling his hands away from the officer, which is when the cop began putting his arms on Eric’s neck wrestling him to the ground.
Being pinned on the ground with an arm on his neck and plenty of other officers holding him, Garner pleaded 11 times saying “I can’t breathe.” However, the cops didn’t release him and he lost consciousness afterward. The moment he became unconscious, that’s the only time the cops turned him sideways to relieve his breathing but it was too late. There was no ounce of movement or breathing from Garner.
The thing with Eric Garner’s death is that the medical staff examined his body and declared it as homicide but the grand jury of Richmond County made a decision to not charge the NYPD officer. The jury’s decision sparked public outrage resulting to people protesting and rallying to seek justice for Garner’s death.
Some, but not all, of the notable movements following Garner’s death were:
July 19, 2014 – Staten Island protest organized by Sharpton
July 28, 2014 – WalkRunFly Productions and poet Daniel J. Watts held a protest in New York Times Square
March 2015 – A black activist group in Chicago called Assata’s Daughters was formed
December 3, 2014 – NY citizens protested and executed lie-ins against the verdict of the cop who chokehold Garner
December 5, 2014 – thousands of protesters gathered in Boston Common and marched to seek justice for Eric Garner
Garner was not the last victim of police brutality because and 2014 was not the year when the brutality stopped because after 6 years it occurred again.
“I can’t breathe…they will kill me… they will.” – George Floyd, 2020
On May 25, 2020, a heart-shattering event took place. A man named George Floyd, who is an African-American that lived in Texas, entered a store in Minneapolis, Minnesota and paid using a check. It was nothing but a simple day for everyone until police offers started to come to the store and arrested Floyd. The cashier had troubles transacting George’s check that’s why the cops came to check if it there’s a forgery happening.
He was arrested and was also pinned on the ground by a police officer through kneeling on his neck for more than 8 minutes. There were videos taken from the arrest until the death of Floyd. A lot of passersby that pleaded the police officer, Derek Chauvin, to release George Floyd from being knelt but it seems like he didn’t heard their request and continued kneeling him. The news reported that there were a total of 4 police officers that were there during the incident, including Tou Thao who restrained the passersby from approaching officer Chauvin.
In the span of 6 minutes, George Floyd pleaded for his life. He begged the police officer to release him by repeatedly saying “I can’t breathe,” “my stomach hurts, my neck hurts… everything hurts.” He even said “they will kill me” and “please.” Afterward, Floyd didn’t move nor say a word. He just stayed on the ground lying with eyes closed and an officer still kneeling on his neck. He was released after an ambulance came but there were no signs of life in him already.
The footages circulated online and have reached people from all over the world. His death gathered people from different places with different races and social statuses fighting for justice. Racism once again became a hot topic and has made people all across the globe to raise their voice and cry for justice. Protests and rallies occurred resulting to people flooding the streets of Minneapolis, especially on the police station. George Floyd’s death brought people of different colors to end racism and police brutality.
It is not a “history repeats itself” occurrence because it never stopped happening. Racism has always been there, destroying lives of people who want to live peacefully and have long to live without fear of being hurt because of their color. This racial discrimination has already became topics of films, news, and books — like Key, Earl books on unraveling the poverty-driven culture and Angelou, Maya’s poems that tackle racial discrimination, raise awareness and help people realize that everyone should be treated equally regardless of where they came from and what their color is. #EndRacismNow #BlackLivesMatter
The Damsel’s Files 