On the recordMay 21, 2024
As a senior member of the Committee on the Judiciary, and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance, I want to thank my colleagues for hosting this Congressional Black Caucus Special Order to discuss the families of police violence, their experiences, and the CBC's commitment to enhancing public safety in this nation. The horrifying killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, by a Minneapolis police officer shocked and awakened the moral consciousness of the nation. The world witnessed the brutal and traumatizing nine minutes where George Floyd begged for his life--uttering his last words ``I can't breathe''--as an officer, ignoring the pleas of George and all those witnessing his death, refused to lift his knee off the neck of George suffocating him and ending his life. ``I can't breathe'' continues to echo around the world alongside our cries for justice, change, and protection from and under the law. We are horrified by the continued massacre of Black bodies in this country for merely existing. Our homes, our cars, and our neighborhoods continue to be invaded with violence at the hands of racist ideologies that breed fear into our institutions and threaten our lives. There have been countless murders of Black Americans by the state. Just last week, Roger Fortson, a 23-year-old Black U.S. airman was shot and killed in his own home by a Florida deputy. This vicious cycle must end.…
