Be the leaders this world needs. Do the right thing.
In tearful testimony, he begs for an end to racist police killings
WASHINGTON — Like millions of other Americans, George Floyd’s brother just wants the pain to end.
Philonise Floyd testified before Congress on Wednesday that he’s sick and tired of cops killing black people “for no reason” and pleaded with lawmakers to overhaul the nation’s law enforcement system so that his older brother didn’t die in vain.
Appearing before the House Judiciary Committee one day after burying George in Houston, Floyd, 38, recalled his brother as “a gentle giant” who, even in his last, dreadful moments, acted politely toward the white Minneapolis officer who pressed a knee into his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds despite his desperate cries for help.
“He still called them ‘Sir’ as he begged for his life,” Floyd said, his voice filling up with emotion as he read from prepared remarks. “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.”
The fact that his 46-yearold brother — known for his kind, gentle demeanor — was killed by an officer underscores that there’s something rotten going on in American policing, Floyd said.
“George wasn’t hurting anyone that day. He didn’t deserve to die over 20 dollars. I am asking you, is that what a black man’s life is worth? Twenty dollars? This is 2020. Enough is enough,” Floyd said, referring to the allegation that his brother had used a counterfeit bill. “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.”
He added, “Stop the pain. Stop us from being tired.”
Floyd’s poignant testimony was part of a hearing on the Justice in Policing Act, a bill introduced this week by Democrats that proposes a slate of law enforcement reforms, including bans on chokeholds and racial profiling; beefed-up bias training for officers; mandates on body-camera usage; a national registry of abusive cops, and federal mechanisms for making it easier to hold police accountable for misconduct.
Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, who helped write the bill, said she wishes the legislation would have been rolled out sooner.
“If this had been a law last
year, George Floyd would be alive because chokeholds would be banned,” Bass said.
As mass protests continued to rage across the country over his brother’s caught-oncamera death, Philonise Floyd couldn’t keep the tears back any longer once lawmakers began asking him questions.
“My family, they just cry, cry every day, and just ask, ‘Why? Why?’ He pleaded for his life. He said he couldn’t breathe,” Floyd said.
“I just wish I could get him back,” Floyd said before taking a long break to wipe tears from his eyes. “Those officers, they get to live.”
The police reform bill is likely to breeze through the Democratic-controlled House, but faces tougher odds in the Republicandominated Senate. President Trump has also suggested he’s not inclined to sign it as written over laments that it’s anti-police.
In addition to Philonise Floyd, Democrats called a number of civil rights lawyers and police officials as witnesses for Wednesday’s emotional hearing.
Benjamin Crump, the Floyd family’s attorney and a veteran civil rights litigant, testified to the importance of a provision in the bill that would repeal so-called “qualified immunity,” a federal doctrine that shields police officers from most legal action.
“Immunity breeds impunity,” Crump said. “We need to attack this like it’s an epidemic on black people, because that’s what we see happening in our communities.”
Derek Chauvin, the exMinneapolis cop charged with George Floyd’s murder, was referenced repeatedly through the hearing.
Floyd suggested Chauvin may have had an ulterior motive for kneeling on his brother’s neck.
“I think it was personal,” Floyd said, noting that Chauvin and his sibling at one point worked together at the same bar.
Republicans used most of their allotted time to rail against mounting calls for defunding police departments.
“It is pure insanity,” said Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, the Judiciary Committee’s top Republican. “The fact that my Democrat colleagues won’t speak out against this crazy policy — it’s just that frightening.”
The Republicans also called a handful of witnesses, including Angela Underwood-Jacobs, an ex-GOP councilwoman in Lancaster, Calif., whose federal law enforcement officer brother was fatally shot during a recent protest in Oakland, and Dan Bongino, a former NYPD cop and vocal Trump supporter.
Underwood-Jacobs said justice must be brought both for her brother and Floyd.
“Mr. Floyd’s murder was just not cruel and reprehensible, but criminal,” she testified. “The officers involved should be brought to justice and held accountable for their actions. … I wish that same justice for my brother, Patrick.”
Philonise Floyd, who wore a face mask with his brother’s picture on it for most of the hearing, ended his testimony with a stirring tribute for his sibling.
“Perry, look at what you did, big brother. You’re changing the world,” he said, using his brother’s nickname. “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.”