WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. congressional panel confronting racial injustice and police violence on Wednesday heard an impassioned plea from a brother of George Floyd not to let his death in Minneapolis police custody to have been in vain, lamenting that he “didn’t deserve to die over $20.”
More than two weeks after George Floyd died when a Minneapolis police knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes, the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee held its first formal proceedings to examine issues underlying weeks of U.S. civil unrest as it consider sweeping reform legislation.
Floyd, a Houston native who had worked security at nightclubs, was unarmed when taken into custody outside a corner market where an employee had reported that a man matching his description tried to pay for cigarettes with a counterfeit bill.
“George wasn’t hurting anyone that day. He didn’t deserve to die over $20. I’m asking you, is that what a black man’s worth? $20? This is 2020. Enough is enough,” Philonise Floyd, 42, of Missouri City, Texas, near Houston, told the lawmakers. “It is on you to make sure his death is not in vain.”
He buried his brother on Tuesday and broke down at the witness table while describing how they had not been able to say goodbye.
“I’m here to ask you to make it stop. Stop the pain,” Floyd testified. “George called for help and he was ignored. Please listen to the call I’m making to you now, to the calls of our family and the calls ringing on the streets of all the world.”
The emotionally charged hearing had lawmakers and witnesses expressing sorrow over Floyd’s May 25 death, the latest in a long string of killings of African-American men and women by police that have sparked anger on America’s streets and fresh calls for reforms here
But the hearing also highlighted divisions in Congress and the country between those advocating sweeping changes to policing practices and those defending the work of law enforcement and blaming any problems on, as one Republican lawmaker put it, a “few bad apples.”
It was unclear whether lawmakers would put aside their differences and pass legislation, or whether President Donald Trump would cooperate.
“Justice for George,” Philonise Floyd told reporters on his way into the hearing venue.
The Judiciary Committee is preparing to shepherd a broad package of legislation, aimed at combating police violence and racial injustice, to the House floor by July 4, and is expected to hold further hearings next week to prepare the bill for a full House vote.
“While we hold up human rights in the world, we obviously have to hold them up in our country,” said Representative Karen Bass, chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, which crafted the legislation.
Representative Jim Jordan, the committee’s top Republican, said “the American people understand it’s time for a real discussion, real debate, real solutions about police treatment of African-Americans.” He also praised Trump’s efforts in response to Floyd’s death and subsequent protests. The Republican president called for a militarized response to the protests and touted “law and order.”
Lawmakers heard urgent pleas from civil rights advocates for strong reforms and more funding for social services, as well as vocal support for police from three witnesses called by Republicans. Some witnesses and lawmakers participated by video link to ensure social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Fraternal Order of Police, a union organization, has welcomed the reform bill’s introduction, saying in a statement that further discussions could produce a law capable of having a positive impact on law enforcement and policing.
Senate Republicans are working on rival legislation due to be released on Friday that emphasizes the collection of data rather than changes in laws and policies.
The Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee will hold its own hearing next Tuesday.
Reporting by David Morgan and Richard Cowan; Editing by Scott Malone and Will Dunham
Full text of Philonise Floyd’s statement to U.S. Congress
(Reuters) – Here is the text of the prepared testimony to a U.S. congressional hearing on Wednesday of Philonise Floyd, whose brother George Floyd’s death under the knee of a white police officer roused worldwide protests against racial injustice:
“Chairman Jerrold Nadler and members of the Committee:
“Thank you for the invitation to be here today to talk about my big brother, George. The world knows him as George, but I called him Perry. Yesterday, we laid him to rest. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. I’m the big brother now. So it was my job to comfort our brothers and sisters, Perry’s kids, and everyone who loved him. And that’s a lot of people. I have to be the strong one now, because it’s what George would have done.
“And me being the big brother now is why I’m here today. To do what Perry always did for us – to take care of the family and others. I couldn’t take care of George the day he was killed, but maybe by speaking with you today, I can help make sure that his death isn’t in vain. To make sure that he is more than another face on a T-shirt. More than another name on a list that won’t stop growing.
“George always made sacrifices for his family. And he made sacrifices for complete strangers. He gave the little that he had to help others. He was our gentle giant. I was reminded of that when I watched the video of his murder. He was mild mannered; he didn’t fight back. He listened to the officers. He called them ‘sir.’ The men who took his life, who suffocated him for eight minutes and 46 seconds. He still called them ‘sir’ as he begged for his life.
“I can’t tell you the kind of pain you feel when you watch something like that. When you watch your big brother, who you’ve looked up to your whole life, die. Die begging for your mom.
“I’m tired. I’m tired of the pain I’m feeling now and I’m tired of the pain I feel every time another black person is killed for no reason. I’m here today to ask you to make it stop. Stop the pain. Stop us from being tired. George’s calls for help were ignored. Please listen to the call I’m making to you now, to the calls of our family, and to the calls ringing out in the streets across the world. People of all backgrounds, genders and race have come together to demand change. Honor them, honor George, and make the necessary changes that make law enforcement the solution – and not the problem. Hold them accountable when they do something wrong. Teach them what it means to treat people with empathy and respect. Teach them what necessary force is. Teach them that deadly force should be used rarely and only when life is at risk.
“George wasn’t hurting anyone that day. He didn’t deserve to die over twenty dollars. I am asking you, is that what a black man’s life is worth? Twenty dollars? This is 2020. Enough is enough. The people marching in the streets are telling you enough is enough. Be the leaders that this country, this world, needs. Do the right thing.
“The people elected you to speak for them, to make positive change. George’s name means something. You have the opportunity here to make your names mean something, too.
“If his death ends up changing the world for the better. And I think it will. I think it has. Then he died as he lived. It is on you to make sure his death isn’t in vain. I didn’t get the chance to say goodbye to Perry while he was here. I was robbed of that. But, I know he’s looking down on us now. Perry, look at what you did, big brother. You’re changing the world. Thank you for everything. For taking care of us when you were on Earth, and for taking care of all of us now. I hope you found mama and can rest in peace and power.”