Eric Garner (1970-2014), an American street vendor, beloved husband and 43-year-old father of six, became yet another unarmed Black man killed by the New York City police (NYPD) on July 17th 2014. His crime: selling untaxed cigarettes.
Like Oscar Grant, it was caught on video, but instead of shooting him in the back the police put him in a chokehold.
NYPD chokehold history: In 1983 the NYPD killed Michael Stewart with a chokehold, immortalized in film as Radio Raheem in Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing” (1989). In 1993 New York outlawed police chokeholds. From 2009 to 2013 the toothless Civilian Complaint Review Board received an average of three chokehold complaints a week. The city has done next to nothing about it.
The NYPD is badly trained and has little regard for Black life – as the two Garner videos make clear.
The police report says nothing about a chokehold. In the second video Garner appears to be dead – his body moves like a dead fish. Or, as the police report puts it, Garner “did not appear to be in great distress.”
In the first video Garner had just broken up a fight. The police accuse him of – selling cigarettes. He denies it, asks them to produce a witness. He had been arrested twice this year for selling untaxed cigarettes. Apparently he buys cigarettes out of state and then sells them at half a dollar apiece on the street.
Garner is big – 6 foot 3 (1.91m) and 350 pounds (160kg) – but by all accounts he is not violent.
Garner asks the police to leave him alone, says he was minding his own business. He argues with them. They are patient but once backup arrives they move in: one in front, three from the side and one behind. Garner holds out his hands to keep them away but does not put up a fight.
Officer Daniel Pantaleo puts Garner in a chokehold. The police take him down and pin him to the ground. Garner:
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
Had they let him sit up at this point, he probably would have lived. Instead they keep him firmly down and put on three handcuffs.
In the second video his body is lifeless. The police act as if he is alive but give him no medical help. When the ambulance workers arrive four minutes later they do not help him either. He arrives at the hospital dead – they say he had a heart attack on the way.
The police have taken officers Pantaleo and Justin Damico off the street. They took Pantaleo’s badge and gun. No charges, no arrests.
The hospital takes it a bit more seriously: the four ambulance workers are suspended without pay.
Mayor de Blasio finds the Garner case “very troubling” and promises a “thorough investigation”.
The coroner has yet to report the official cause of death.
There have been at least two protests so far.
Today is his funeral.
– Abagond, 2014.
Update (July 19th 2015): Even though the medical examiner ruled it a homicide, the grand jury refused to bring charges against the police. Last week, the city settled out of court with Garner’s family for $5.9 million. Daniel Pantaleo wants his job back.
Update (February 19th 2016): The Eric Garner case is now before a federal grand jury. The NYPD, meanwhile, last month charged one officer with wrongdoing: Kizzy Adonis. She was one of the two sergeants in charge of the scene. She is Black, possibly the only Black police officer who was there. The charges are disciplinary and internal, not criminal.
Update (August 20th 2019): Yesterday the NYPD fired Pantaleo for using a chokehold. They were waiting on the conclusion of the US Department of Justice investigation, which ended last month with no charges being brought.
See also:
- First Garner video, second Garner video
- Daniel Pantaleo
- Kizzy Adonis
- Oscar Grant – also caught on video
- other NYPD cases:
- Oriana Farrell – also caught on video, also argues with the police, with all hell breaking loose once backup arrives
- Virginia Dotson
- The police
- The black brute stereotype
Abagond 
ODE TO ERIC GARNER: RIP
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
Of course he’s black!
The spirits of multi-generational hatred
and subjugation can be felt and seen
in the video just as in real life
Saint Sambo could have saved this man.
But we have forgotten
the ancestral wisdom
of the Shining Smiling Coon.
Did not St. Sambo say something of worth
in the Sermon on the Dumpster?
He said, “The squeaky wheel may get grease.
But the standing nail gets hammered down.”
Prophetic.
The brother was standing too tall.
Listen carefully to the squeak in his word.
and the nail in his complaint.
Note how they subdued him.
Which is with greater numbers
and organizational skills.
Hallmarks of the civilizations
of the Divine White Booty.
And there were blacks among them….
WITH THEM!
I saw at least one sister
“doing her job.”
Note he had a “seizure”
and he wasn’t choked to death.
(You know looks can be deceiving.)
And if you worshippers
of the Divine White Ass Holy of Holy
don’t know why a brother need sarcasm
Sometimes you need to use sarcasm
to keep from crying.
– Marq Dukes
21 July 2014
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Eric Garner, RIP
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I can’t get my head around what the videos show. The police just rounded on him and brought him down for what, I don’t know.
What did Mr Garner do wrong?
Kiwi and I were talking about this on Open Thread, and the part I didn’t understand was that at some point the police decided to arrest him and Mr Garner refused.
What did Mr Garner do wrong?
Kiwi says:
https://abagond.wordpress.com/open-thread/#comment-244289
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@bulanik you clearly haven’t had much interaction with american police
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True, V8. None.
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Finally one I agree with you 100% on. Gas these cops.
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[…] Eric Garner (1971?-2014), an American street vendor, beloved husband and 43-year-old father of six, became yet another unarmed Black man killed by the New York City police (NYPD) on July 17th 2014. His crime: selling untaxed cigarettes….The police have taken officers Pantaleo and Justin Damico off the street. They took Pantaleo’s badge and gun. No charges, no arrests.The hospital takes it a bit more seriously: the four ambulance workers are suspended without pay.Mayor de Blasio finds the Garner case “very troubling” and promises a “thorough investigation”.The coroner has yet to report the official cause of death.There have been at least two protests so far.Today is his funeral.Click through to read. […]
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[…] Source: abagond.wordpress.com […]
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I want to know why protests are always so small scale. When is there going to be a protest of several hundred thousand ppl against this kind of behaviour?
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I understand that the police have a job to do. I get that.
But anyone who has any (U.S.) street experience knows that the police have a big attitude problem that centers around ego and authority.
Authority is necessary for law officers, of course. But I’m not taking about the authority of the laws, Im talking about PERSONAL authority. Cops feel PERSONALLY slighted when they are not instantly obeyed. They react badly to disagreement or complaint, even when it is legitimate and respectful. Far too many police seek to exact personal revenge upon citizens for daring to question their actions.
And this case is what results from that attitude. Very sad, and I might add it doesn’t only happen to Blacks either. It’s a very broad problem.
My advice to anyone. Do not challenge the police at the time of arrest. If you have a challenge, save it for the judge. You will not get very far complaining to or confronting the police unless you are very lucky.
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I’m always astonished how violent the police in the us is. We certainly have our fair share of police brutality in europe, but it seems a bit more commen in us (or perhaps the news just cover it more, i haven’t looked at any numbers).
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How much faith is there in this mayor?
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@Kartoffel,
The only place I have been where the police looked like they might be more violent than the USA was in Brazil. I witnessed police rough up and drag people away there. Of course, that is just anecdotal.
In SE Asia, I worry more about corruption – Police looking for petty bribes from people. In HK and SG, I think they are pretty useless (their policing is weak), but crime, at least street crime, feels very low there anyhow. It is the nonviolent nonstreet crime that I am more concerned about there.
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George Ryder — the king of the misinformed…
cops can kill without consequence in this country. i can’t remember one story of a cop going to jail for something like this. they always get a pass.
Justin Volpe, who attacked Abner Louima with the wooden handle from a toilet plunger. And his fellow officer, Schwarz was also prosecuted. Nobody died, but Volpe got 30 years and Schwarz got about five.
If you were to do a little fact-checking, you’d find yourself better informed. I’ve offered only one example for NY City, where I live, but there are others. You can look them up.
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You say he sold untaxed cigarettes? Then his death was his own fault. It seems like a “harmless” enough crime, but to white people he will be seen as a “hardened criminal” and his death will be justified. You yourself know that unless he was a COMPLETE AND TOTAL SAINT, he as a black man does not classify as a “perfect victim”. Look at Trayvon Martin. He was no different from any American teenager in his habits or appearance, and yet he was classified a “thug” and was allowed to be gunned down in the street like a dog by a civilian. I just can’t anymore…
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TOTAL BULLSHIT!!!,
Fire the police commissioner and EVERYONE in the chain of command leading down to the chip who killed him!
Since chokeholds were not allowed, why r they still happening? This is the police commissioner’s responsibility.
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The choked is an illegal form of restraint for the police in NY(it is illegal in most police departments in Ontario also). The cops should have been immediately criminally charged. What are they waiting for? There was a case where they shot a mentally disturbed teenager off a streetcar here in Toronto. The cop was charged with 2nd degree murder. For good measure, another cop(sergeant) ran on the street car and ‘tasered’ this youth as he was in his death throes. It will be interesting to see if these two yahoos in Ny are charged and if the charges stick.
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sb32199
You are the last person on this board who should every lecture a soul about being ill-informed. On almost every post you have shown a lack of ability to not only fact check, but to miss quote even the tiny bit of information you attempt to provide.
So I think I speak for everyone when I award you the title:
Sb32199- king of delusion and misinformation.
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@ Sharina
You speak for me. Never have I had a commenter so wilfully and smugly ignorant, whose “facts” I cannot trust at all.
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Dang! I really need to start looking at the news. This is yet another story I was unaware of. I watched the video and they were going through his pockets. First thing that came to mind is “they are probably going to put some drugs in it.” On top of that they must be a bunch of morons. I could tell the man was already dead just looking at the video so I know like h*ll they could.
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correction misquote
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So I am confused on why all officers involved where not given the same treatment as Pantaleo? I see all of them as culpable. Every last one of them, right down to the EMT, played this elaborate scheme of he is still alive.
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@ King
“But anyone who has any (U.S.) street experience knows that the police have a big attitude problem that centers around ego and authority.”—I agree 100%
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I honestly couldn’t watch the video. I can’t stand to see anyone or anything suffer to death.
I will say that stories like this depresses me and makes me not only despise cops more and more but it makes me even more wary of my own safety. In fact, something like this has hit close to home.
A former high school classmate of mine’s brother was a recent victim of police brutality. Thank God they didn’t kill him, but they messed him up pretty bad. And he didn’t do anything wrong, just minding his business:
http://www.wjla.com/articles/2014/05/jeremy-gordon-speaks-out-about-police-brutality-102906.html
I’m glad he didn’t end up like poor Eric Garner, but what if he did? This is why this seriously worries me.
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This is what happens when one is in a black body or POC. But i agree with everything King said.
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@ King, you said:
I’d be interested in your opinions to a few questions:
-How are these officers acculturated to assume this kind of PERSONAL authority?
-How come they feel they are always right, and can’t be spoken back to?
-As commenters observe that this attitude is a feature of US law enforcement (though hardly exclusive to that country!), what do you believe are the (cultural) factors that lead to these individuals’ personal sense of entitlement?
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This reminds me of “Radio Raheem” In Spike Lee’s “Do The Right Thing.”
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I wonder what DiBlasio is going to do about this?
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^ perhaps that is why there are no mass protests
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@ Brothawolf
I am very sorry to hear that. I was hesitant on watching the video, but I decided to in order to make a comment with all the facts. It p*sses me off is the polite way to put it. I think it just made my blood boil when those morons were talking to the guy as if he was still alive.
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I wonder what DiBlasio is going to do about this?
After he returns from Italy and resumes his role of eroding the management of the city, he’s likely to have a confrontation with Police Commissioner Bratton, who will not last till the end of the mayor’s term.
What was Garner doing? Nothing terribly illegal, but he was selling loosies, which is illegal enough and probably something he shouldn’t have been doing, given that he’s got a police record. Moreover, because he’s interacted with the police on several occasions, he should have known to keep calm.
What will the autopsy show? We shall soon know.
Meanwhile, how much child support did he owe? He surely wasn’t playing straight with the various agencies providing benefits to him, the children and their mothers if he was engaged in a cash business selling loosies.
And just maybe, just maybe he was selling something else to increase his cash flow? Those aren’t capital offenses, so one or two of the cops will undoubtedly face some serious music, however, it’s not likely Garner will emerge as a wholly innocent victim.
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The problem is the level of corruption in the force and how far it runs. I read a case in school of them having to fire a whole police department and start over because it was so rot with corruption that firing a few would not solve the problem. Cops are a brotherhood. They protect their own and sometimes that means protecting them against the people they are to serve. New cops learn the ways from the old cops that were there long enough to get away with their injustices.
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After a while it becomes almost impossible to comment on these things. IMO, they are just symtoms of a larger problem: we live in an anti-human world system. In other words ‘social’ structures do not exist to cultivate a strong society of interrelating individuals but to guarantee their own necessity as the means through which people relate. In other words, the social structures are fundamentally anti-social. They destroy/discourage/control organic webs of interaction in pursuit of their own centralized power. Pictorially, I think of a net versus a wheel. A net is strong but there is no locus of strength. In a wheel all spokes lead to the center, are supported by it and connect to each other only through it. The system exists to create and maintain a wheel structure of human interrelationship with itself at the center. Thus, to bring my argument full circle, it guarantees its own necessity as a parasite feeding upon interpersonal disorder by being the accepted arbitrator in a dystopia it helps construct.
Orwell’s novel 1984:
“The old civilizations claimed that they were founded on love or justice. Ours is founded upon hatred. In our world there will be no emotions except fear, rage, triumph, and self-abasement. Everything else we shall destroy — everything.”
“We control life, Winston, at all its levels. You are imagining that there is something called human nature which will be outraged by what we do and will turn against us. But we create human nature. Men are infinitely malleable.”
Under these constructs which exist for their own sake (needs the ruled only to be recognized as rulers) the police are, in fact, the state’s internal army. I was only shocked by police (polis: city) behavior when I had the wrong model. Where restrictions on police powers exist those are remarkable and expansion of police powers for any reason should be resisted by smart citizens. In more openly dictatorial contexts (or the KKK-infiltrated southern police during Jim Crow) police ARE the law and are feared by the citizens. Murdering a man because he is suspected of not paying a tax is simply the most unvarnished ‘proper’ behavior of a state enforcer.
RIP Mr. Garner.
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sb32199
I started to respond to your comment, but after reading the varies forms of misinformation and delusions I decided to respond by saying.
And another one.
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Police response to this:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/07/23/police-eric-garner-chokehold-nyc/13032275/
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It’s a crying shame. I can’t watch the video either, it’s too depressing. My heart goes out to his family.
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I am very sorry to hear that. I was hesitant on watching the video, but I decided to in order to make a comment with all the facts. It p*sses me off is the polite way to put it. I think it just made my blood boil when those morons were talking to the guy as if he was still alive.
Sharina, it drives me crazy too, but it’s not surprising. Whatever the police do to us is no longer surprising but still infuriating.
sb32199, I find it sad the way you try to subtly criminalize Garner as a hidden way to side with police. As far as (at least) I know, Garner was in trouble for insignificant things, none of which deserves a death sentence.
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I wasn’t able to bring myself to watch the video either. I can’t do anything for Mr. Garner so there is no need for me to watch the brutality. I don’t think I want to watch footage of a murder unless there is a purposeful reason, for me, to do so.
King’s advice seems like something to tattoo to one’s neurons.
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Also, sb32199, with all due respect, not only do you need to get your facts check, it sounds like your moral compass needs a tune up as well.
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Also, I just don’t want to watch his life taken away…
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However unbearable it is to watch the video, we have to try to get Americans to see it. Millions of them. The whole world. I put a link to my FB and it did not attract as much attention as my conservation work. I think that is wrong.
Recall that Emmett Till’s mother insisted that the photos of his corpse be published across the country and that his funeral be held with an open casket? She wanted to the whole country to see and know what happened. That was before Social media and you tube.
If we want to see this stop we need everyone to see it. It will force De Blasio not only to investigate this case, but hopefully to make sweeping changes to the NYPD.
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Good point jefe
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@ Bulanik
-How are these officers acculturated to assume this kind of PERSONAL authority?
I think that the job seems to attract persons who crave the mantle of authority and also weapons fanatics. Of course, that doesn’t mean all or most, but certainly too high a percentage seem to slip through the filters, They do not see themselves as public secants, they see themselves as prison guard where the world is a prison.
-How come they feel they are always right, and can’t be spoken back to?
I think part of it is probably a trait of their personality type. But I also think when they begin to see themselves as the “shepherds of society” then the importance of their orders being followed becomes paramount in maintaining an orderly society, whether or not their orders are correct. What must be maintained is tight discipline—and if freedoms are occasionally infringed upon, then that is a small price to pay. Better that the chaos of questions and second guessing. Even the occasional death of a sheep is acceptable to achieve this semblance of order.
-As commenters observe that this attitude is a feature of US law enforcement (though hardly exclusive to that country!), what do you believe are the (cultural) factors that lead to these individuals’ personal sense of entitlement?
Well, in the U.S. many police officers are ex military. So you can imagine the militarization effect that these transfers bring to to local police force. Many of the attitudes of an occupational army are acculturated into the civilian police force and an “Us vs. Them” dynamic is adopted. This places the police in a kind of privileged fraternity who take care of their own at the expense of those who they see as the unarmed sheep or cattle. They see themselves as the Knighted classes of Europe or the Samurai of Japan—the noble warrior class who are allowed to carry weapons.
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@sb32199
So what’s your point? A man’s life is more expendable if he is engaged in a few petty forms of mischief? That a black man on welfare should just sit his ass down & live on crumbs instead of trying to bring in a bit of extra income?
You seem to know an awful lot about Garner and his personal life. Since you just reamed another commenter for supposed lack of fact-checking, I’m assuming you have all the hard facts to back up these charges…
Also, how much child support do YOU owe?
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When I saw the video I felt the hateful and conceited attitude that Pantaleo had for Mr. Garner. His blackness, his obesity, his poverty, it was all too much for him to handle. All of the things that are portrayed negatively by US society were in this man. Mr. Garner was murdered in broad daylight in a supposed, democratic, western, developed country by supposed trained members of law enforcement. Mr. Garner took a stand. He had had enough of the constant infringements of his rights, his humanity and his dignity. For the vicious animals with badges this was too much to handle. Mr. Garner murder should not be in vain. His story needs to be told. His life needs to be remembered. His stand needs to praised. I have never met Mr. Garner but feel in my heart that this world is a lesser place for his absence while the murderers in badges still live.
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@Bulanik
@King
On top of all that, there are no physical fitness standards for American cops to maintain in order to stay on the force. I find it utterly terrifying seeing morbidly obese cops swarming all over the streets of Chicago or NYC or Baltimore, heavily armed & with no physical options but to go for the gun.
This is a guaranteed recipe for disaster…
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@ Prometo
What Mr. Garner was doing was wrong. You cannot sell contraband.
You also cannot decide that you will not be arrested for breaking the law.
He was doubly wrong.
But the point is that if Mr. Garner has to follow the law, then certainly the police must follow the law as well. They cannot use illegal chokeholds on him. And they certainly cannot kill him while using an illegal chokehold on him. Because selling contraband cigarettes and having an attitude problem are much lesser infractions then killing someone. It ends up that the police are guilty of a much worse crime than Mr, Garner ever was.
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Yes, that is a good point Jefe.
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I would have to admit that LAPD rivals with NYPD in police brutality and civilian killings. Back in the mid-1980s LAPD’s racist chief Daryl Gates stated that black people have inferior arteries, which he aimed the infamous police chokehold on blacks. Oh yes, this is the same racist dude that allowed the battering ram to knock down houses in South-Central Los Angeles. Old-School rapper Toddy Tee’s (Compton native) 1985 rap song breaks down the LAPD’s battering ram (“batter ram”).
To read about Daryl Gates’s racist comment on blacks go to:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/04/16/obit.gates/
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@Michael Cooper: You are correct, I remember that. It was during the Rodney King beating. And not to mention several weeks ago the CHP savagely beat that mentally ill black woman who was barefoot. Saying she was a threat to herself and others.
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I totally agree with commenter Prometo, they were looking at his dark skin and his obesity and his poverty. They were prejudiced by his outside appearance which is another thing i feel played into the savageness of his assault. Thank you for bring in those points Prometo. They perceived him as a savage brute. That is one of the many negative stereotypes that black people are judged with. Physical appearances play a huge role in how black people will have justice will be metted out.
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I find it ironic that they would judge this man on his morbid obesity when they are obese themselves. it is probably a stereotype about them sitting around eating donuts, but i feel they did judge him by his physical appearance when they are not they paragon of physical fitness.
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@ Jefe
Eric Garner is a terrible poster child. As Jadapoo1 points out, he is far from being a perfect victim. On my four-point scale, he scores a 0 where Emmett Till scored a 3.
First, Garner is Black. You lose 56% of White support right there, right off the top.
Second, Garner has a criminal record. That makes it hard for Blacks to support him in a big way. It makes it hard for Whites to see his fate as undeserved.
Third, Garner was a Black man between the ages of 18 to 65. There is no way in hell Whites are going to see him as defenceless, not even if he is unarmed and outnumbered five-to-one by armed men. He is a Black Brute with Superhuman Negro Strength. HE is the threat, not the police. Every single damn time.
Fourth, Garner was a victim of the police. Whites are afraid of Blacks and depend on the police to keep Them down, to control Them. Blacks push for a strong Review Board but Whites oppose it. Whites want to give the police a completely free, unaccountable, unconstitutional hand when it comes to Black people. That is why the police are off the chain in the first place. It is not some accident, some overlooked, slip-through-the-cracks thing.
In the late 1960s White racists shifted from “segregation forever” to “law and order”. They racialized crime. It became the new way to keep Blacks down, to keep them out of White neighbourhoods. It became a way to keep the police largely untouched by the civil rights reforms of the 1960s.
When the police put the Central Park Jogger in a chokehold and kill her, THEN there will be a huge outcry, then heads will roll, then safeguards that work will be put in.
https://abagond.wordpress.com/2012/05/18/the-perfect-victim/
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http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/24/nyregion/quick-action-on-chokehold-death-has-shielded-de-blasio-from-ire-for-now.html
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^ Maybe this city administration will be a little different. Maybe we don’t need a “perfect victim” to see action taken.
Let’s see.
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i’m 100 miles from vancouver, bc, i’m not allowed in canada :(. No they will not charge these cops, probably some form of suspension or something, all the cops are still on duty except on i think
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http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2014/07/cops-react-to-the-death-of-eric-garner.html
it is complete disdain these police officers have towards ‘civilians’. Apparently two of the officers involved in this one have been placed on ‘desk assignments’
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This sickens me to my core. Every stereotype and gut white fear came to play in this mans death. Another death of another black man, an American, a father. The perpetrators hiding behind authority. How would public policy change when black people start amassing large numbers of assault weapons and truly demanding justice?
Police departments all over the country have become more militarized as the violent crime rate has gone down. Research has borne this out.They have a adopted harm first and police later tactics. I suggest the book “Rise of the Warrior Cop:The Militarization of Americas Police Forces by Radley Balko.
Add to this toxic mixture the realities of embedded racism and loss of civil liberty and privacy ..all people of color should be on watch.
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@Mary
I agree. I have never seen fat cops like that and I had to really ask myself if they were really cops. That one guy that kept talking to him was just huge.
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NYPD is a fan of the choke-hold and civilian abuse. Back in 1992 when I was a Staten Island resident I witnessed a cop put the choke-hold on a teen-aged brother whom a bakery assistant accused of stealing something. A crowd had gathered around trying to make the officer loosen his grip. When back up came he threw him in the back of a police car. I wrote the local newspaper about what I had witnessed and put in a complaint to the precinct in charge of the neighborhood about excessive restraint. Several weeks later I received a letter from their “inner investigative” department – I think the INS – to come down and give a taped statement. When I went there, the investigating detective tried to appear to be intimidating and mentioned several times I didn’t have to make any statement and that I could withdraw the complaint, and that I may have to meet the officer accused in my complaint, etc. etc. I told him I welcomed the chance to speak to the bully face to face and tell him what a DE-humanizing bastard he was. He stopped talking and let the tape roll. Little good it did I’m sure.
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I’ve heard it said that when St Patrick chased the snakes out of Ireland, they all swam across the ocean and joined the police force.
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@dorisjean23
Thanks for sharing your story.
So, was there any follow-up?
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@Dorisjean23, good on you, these out of control “protect and servers” need to be reported on and reprimended as much as possible! R,I.P. Mr. Eric Garner, and may your family and loved get peace, healing, and justicE!!!
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..loved ones..typo
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@jefe
You know, I received a letter back after a month or two from this “Inside Investigative Dept.” and the conclusion was that the officer used the required restraint as instructed in officer training or some BS like that, and that no other witnesses had come forward to corroborate my story. Of course. I wrote them back expressing my disappointment saying that this officer had the opportunity to be a mentor for the neighborhood kids by showing his humanity at the same time handling his duties. Now, I pointed out that he would be a symbol of fear and mistrust. I then warned that this was a violence against human rights (got really wordy) that would soon blow up in the police department’s face. I should have remembered the year this incident happened more accurately because a few months later, the Rodney King thing went down in California, so the incident must have happened sometime around 1990.
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First, we saw the black homeless, elderly woman, getting pummeled in the face by a white cop. Now we see a black man, getting choked to death for “supposedly” selling cigarettes. You would have thought he was selling cocaine or crack!
I haven’t viewed the video and i won’t bother. It’ll just make me think, 99.9% of white people are racists. Oh, wait….. @ : o O ) >
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@Sharina: Thanks for responding, I just had to get that off my chest. This is just one of many dehumanizing episodes with law enforcement. It could be any of us POC.
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@dorisjean 23: Good on you, they were using intimidation tactics. Wow. I really learned something from your post.
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@Eldridge S. We are on the same page brother about those fat cops.
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@jefe: Good points.
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dorisjean23 writes
Back in 1992 when I was a Staten Island resident I witnessed a cop put the choke-hold on a teen-aged brother whom a bakery assistant accused of stealing something…When back up came he threw him in the back of a police car.
So 22 years ago an accused thief was apprehended and taken to the precinct house in a squad car. Wow. Such news. And only 22 years ago.
How does a cop know if a suspect is going to cooperate or resist? When does a cop decide it’s better to use some force?
A few nights ago a female NY City cop was punched in the face by a young black male she was attempting to stop. The punch took out some of her teeth.
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keep calm and don’t resist arrest,especially if your a big male…….
but if you can’t remain calm and reasonable you can’t except others to…
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@dorisjean23
So, that means that, they discounted it because your testimony was not that credible?
I just wonder if there is any subtext – “no other WHITE witnesses had come forward to corroborate my story.
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Hurt them in their pockets.
DON’T BUY ITALIAN!
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@jefe – true, had I been white, or if there were white witnesses they may have taken some kind of reprimand. I knew they were trying to get me to back down, I could feel the intimidation, they didn’t want anyone questioning how they handled their business. I knew they weren’t questioning my credibility – they were questioning me questioning their corruption.
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^ So individuals will not be very effective.
to me that means credibility – not whether you were telling the truth or not(ie, credible witness), but whether you have the means or the basis for questioning them in the first place (ie, credible evaluator of what constitutes police brutality). Nowadays, people can take videos on their phone.
That is why we need a mass campaign as soon as a good moment arrives (and Eric Garner may not make a good poster boy, but at least no one can delete the video evidence).
By a mass campaign, I mean over 10m video views and a protest march in the hundreds of thousands. Could be in Staten island.
I just joined part of a march that numbered over 500,000 a few weeks ago. I don’t even think that is that that large. NYC is big enough to attract those kinds of numbers. When will people say enough is enough?
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Jefe, you know at the time I was invited down to the station, I think they were sizing me up to see what kind of trouble I would make for them – if I were the kind of individual who would start a mass neighborhood protest. At that moment in time, I was reacting on raw instinct. The more I talk about it now, the more I am starting to remember. I could see the kid’s lips moving mouthing off at the policeman. He must’ve made him mad cause that’s when he put him in the choke hold. A crowd of people had gathered outside the bakery, because the young man was being treated so roughly. I was sitting across the way looking out of the window of the little health food store I was working at. Nobody was saying anything – I ran outside and starting yelling: “Hey! he’s abusing that kid That’s not right!” Then the crowd started to close in, roughly about 30 people or so and they started yelling to let him go. That’s when back up pulled up. The senior officer got out of the squad car and seeing all the people kinda of shocked and yelling he reluctantly told the officer to let go, then they literally threw him in back of the car. .
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another thing is how little you ever hear when its a white victim,I “liked” copwatch on facebook and saw report after report of white males and females{wonder where asians and latino’s where| young ,old,shot to death,beat down etc..
but other than those facebook copwatch reports thats it.
But let a black male regardless of the circumstances die in the vicinity of police and now we suddenly have to be concerned.
This is getting old and boring,guess what ,people are going to continue to get killed by people whose job it is to police,and yeah some wrongly and unjustly…..and
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I’ve watched the first video. Bulanik quoted Kiwi saying the following, and I, thought the following was a critical part of the situation between Mr. Garner and the Police after watching the video twice: Mr. Garner resisted arrest.
Resisting arrest is an across the board big deal and something not to be done. But if you are a man of considerable size it is even more imperative to NOT resist arrest, and of course also being black just adds to the urgency of NOT resisting.
In my near violent encounter with a couple security scum in NY, who tried to detain me, I did resist. But who are they? Nobodies that’s who. But the police!? There is no way I would ever convey to the police that I think their declaration –and that’s what it is, a declaration– to arrest me is open to debate, right there on the spot, by me. No way a person can do that!
Mr. Garner looked very fed up. I get fed up. Everyone gets fed up. No one would ever think that being fed up will get you killed. To echo what’s already been said: staying calm with cops is a must. And if you’re the sort of person who is quite expressive (as Mr. Garner may have been) it is even more important to remain calm, to keep your natural personality under wraps temporarily, until the other party is safely away from you.
I think one’s gestures and movements should be slow and deliberate also, in police situations. I once had to get something out of my trunk for an officer and I could just feel the tension go up. I moved like a snail for the entire time I retrieved the object.
Having said all that, in no way do I think Mr. Garner deserves to have met his end at the hands of the police.
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There have been stories circling that cops have to meet quotas. If that is true then it explains a bit. Blacks and other minorities are seen as easy targets to meet those quotas. Many may not know the law or their rights within them, so cops can get away with arresting them with little or no hassle as opposed to a white person who may have connections. With Eric Garner having prior arrest, those cops likely saw him as an easy target to meet their quota.
@ V8
I posted the same article or similar upthread and I immediately though, “what morons.” Did they not consider the racial proportions of this case and then to go to a site and make racist comments.
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Indeed, it looks like this city administration may be a little different.
(http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/25/nyregion/new-york-city-taking-a-seemingly-more-conciliatory-approach-to-lawsuits.html)
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[…] writing this post because the murder of Eric Garner by the NYPD this past July 17th, is just about the last straw. Not only was he murdered in cold blood, and on […]
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@sb32199
Which fits neatly into your worldview that all young black males are potential criminals and thusly deserve the harsh treatment they often get from the police and society in general, regardless of their innocence or guilt. I have stronger words for you, but I don’t have inside knowledge of what would trigger Abagond’s moderation filter.
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@Peanut
Right. Something like this deserves a ticket at most. But that shows you how cowardly these hateful cops are, and shows how hateful sb32199 is for condoning this murder.
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Mbeti is correct
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That being said.. justice for Mr. Garner. F them cops.
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How do you think his kids feel. If my pops was strangled like that I would want to f somebody up.
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@Sharina:
Just saw that. No way anyone can reasonably doubt that racism exists in the police system.
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Very sad and disgusting.
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A video of some NY City violence, and a news story about another violent encounter. Both from today’s NY City news.
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/video-shows-gunman-shoot-man-face-brooklyn-store-victim-survives-article-1.1883643
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/manhattan-man-fatally-shot-head-home-article-1.1885112
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@sb32199
How are either of those links relevant?
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Mbeti
another thing is how little you ever hear when its a white victim,I “liked” copwatch on facebook and saw report after report of white males and females{wonder where asians and latino’s where| young ,old,shot to death,beat down etc..
but other than those facebook copwatch reports thats it.
All crimes should be reported regardless of race. I put it to you that it makes the news when black people get involved because of the institutional racism that has occurred since way back when.
But let a black male regardless of the circumstances die in the vicinity of police and now we suddenly have to be concerned.
Yes, another unecessary death at the hands of the police – another death that will be filed as accidental, until the next time.
keep calm and don’t resist arrest,especially if your a big male…….
but if you can’t remain calm and reasonable you can’t except others to,
you dont always have to be doing anything antagonistic for a cop to turn on you. If they have a mind to they will make it happen.
I dont think all cops are bad – or have bad intentions but it cannot be denied that there are those that do.
dave
Mbeti is right
Surprise surprise!!!
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How come you never hear of a gang of black cops choking out and killing a white guy ?
How come you never see the tears of white family grieving at one of their sons killed by black law enforcement officers ?
I’d rather someone shot me in the head. Choking to death is horrible, horrible, slow painful way to go.
Black people we better watch out….it’s like they are saying “We can take your biggest negro and kill him. Now what you gonna do ?”
We know many non-black men are intimidated by black men, especially – Green Mile – brothers like Garner.
I swear many of non-black men will even become MORE confident when it comes to squaring up to black men. Many non-black men measure their manhood via blk men.
I think ever since MMA that’s where they get this chokehold sh*t from, now whites and other non blacks will become EVEN MORE confident.
They feel like they have an remedy to the hand-to-hand combat problem with it comes to blk men.
White guys are doing MMA defense courses to the max now, along side their traditional shooting courses
Many brothers better recognize, all of a sudden, you’ll begin to notice non-black men who are LOOKING to pick fights with you. They will feel brave enough to do this because they know something that YOU DON’T.
If black men think that they are going to get by off by the classic “black guy’ intimidation or running their mouth, they got another thing coming, we gonna have to show and prove
Many of brothers need to start training.I definitely plan on adding grappling techniques to my repertoire and work on stamina too, because you just never know these days.
Other things are goods too
Can you read a map ?
Can you purify water ?
Can you start a fire with a match or lighter ?
Basic stuff that our ancestors could have done blind folded
We need to learn all basic survival skills because we are at war. That’s how I see it
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Sorry that should have said
“Can you start a fire without a match or lighter ?”
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No matter where you go, some unlucky black victim gets shot by a black shooter.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/detroit-boy-killed-bed-gunshot-article-1.1886047
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OFF TOPIC: black-on-black crime.
It is a deflection – and already discussed at length here:
https://abagond.wordpress.com/2013/07/29/the-black-on-black-crime-argument/
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Some on the street interviews with New Yorkers (Brooklynites mostly, I think) on Police harrassment and Mr. Garner’s death.
WSWS:
http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2014/07/30/nycp-j30.html
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I am sadden by Eric Garner’s death and my condolences and prayers go out to his family, close friends and associates but why should Black women always have to ”protect” Black men and ”hold” the ”weight” of the so called community on our backs? The African American collective doesn’t have mine, other Black women or children’s backs. Don’t get me wrong, I am sadden by the death of Eric Garner however what about protecting Black children and Black women from abusive men, rapists and thugs in residential Black areas? It is sad that Black women’s issues is always put on the back burner to ”protect” Black men.
Again, no hatred for Eric Garner. I am sadden by his death.
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The medical examiner said the cause of Mr. Garner’s death was definitely a chokehold. No sh*t sherlock! 🙄
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpKKGMFiT9M)
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Last week I was in a coffee shop. This song came on, one that I know very well, though I’ve not played it nor heard it in a few years. The song is a lament for the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama back in 1963. The song began playing and my mind immediately went to the Eric Garner event.
(http://youtu.be/saN1BwlxJxA)
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I am thankful the medical examiners findings were that it was a choke hold. Because i was expecting them to say something other than the obvious. Something needs to be done about the brutality that is so prevalent among law enforcement regarding black citizens and people of color.
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On those message boards (v8 link above somewhere) the cops were making it all about health complications and not the choke hold directly. Wow, analytical when they want to be, little Einsteins.
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Legion
Thank you for posting that link.
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It would be great if De Blasio does not allow this case to turn this into another cover-up, so that we all know exactly what happened.
It would show that he is serious about fixing things.
Also, if we have
– illegal use of chokehold
– death occurred due to use of chokehold.
Then we don’t have an accident. We have a murder. NYPD’s image would improve greatly if they do right by this case.
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@omnipresent. I’m the one not surprised. I’d be surprised if you even knew about the Kelly Thomas case. I have empathy and sadness for the Garner family. Race shouldn’t matter in combatting police brutality. In my observation , it does to many on this blog including Abagond. I’ll test that right now. Abagond, can you please write something on the Kelly Thomas case? Maybe you weren’t aware of it?
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(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTCkoaBu5lU)
(Richard Pryor in 1974….40 years ago was saying the same thing. Nothing changes)
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kf3ZiSZPMYU)
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@ sb
Deleted off-topic post.
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@ Dave
I was not aware of the Kelly Thomas case. Did research and found a video and a headline showing cop involved found not guilty. If you want to talk further on it I will take what I find on open thread as I am not sure if it would be off topic in here.
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That’s cool sharina, it isn’t directly connected to Eric, but to me it is part of a larger trend of police treating people, especially certain people like Kelly like they are less than and don’t have the same rights. I believe some of that has to do with race, but some of it is bad police training. Kelly was a vagrant that was trying doors on trains to look for a place to sleep. For that he was killed. Because they kept encountering him, their own frustrations from the training told them to treat him with hostility. The cop told him “you’re going to get f’d up tonight” and once one cop jumped the rest of them followed without questions. Just like Eric. There is currently a civil case and cops that aren’t related to the case have been in the courtroom for support. Supporting the color blue no matter what. No matter the cost of a family. You see it more and more no matter the color of the perp, where cops will hurt people with no worry of repercussions , often they even keep their jobs. Eric said “I can’t breathe” . Kelly said “Dad! Help!” His dad was an ex sheriff deputy. That didn’t matter.
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to clarify everyone has the same rights, but some people’s rights are violated more than others.
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(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6IntxCA3sA) How’s it related? he also said “I can’t breathe” many times.
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@ Dave
“to me it is part of a larger trend of police treating people,”—I fully agree. I just watched the video and that was plainly brutal. It looked like one cop climbed on his back and beat him with a flashlight. How did they get off?
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@Sharina Well at least they brought them to trial, that usually doesn’t happen since often there is an “internal” investigation, but who knows. I wonder if the jury can be got to. Especially when cops are involved. They are like the mob. But with far more insiders.
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@ Dave
I am just in complete shock that with that video and clear evidence that the cops set out to hurt this guy that they got set free. I would make their lives a living hell. This really make the fear the outcome for the Eric Garner case.
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“In a sense (as it pertains to this blog), it could be argued that the police are the only legalized white gang in this country.”
_________________________________________________________
There are other legalized white gangs in America (that people don’t usually think of as gangs – but they are!) Here’s a sample.
Lawmakers: Congress & Senate, Executive Branch
Law interpreters: The Judicial System
Money Launderers: Bankers, Wall St, CEOs …
War Mongers for profit: Oil cartels, Bankers, Arms-Weapons manufacturers, etc
Cheap production/labor: Prison Industrial Complex, Immigration, Imported Goods and Services
Economy: Central Bankers, Treasury, Madison Ave P.R. Advertising, Media
Religion: Christianity, POPE, PRIESTS, Clergy
Entertainment: Hollywood, Youtube
Recreation: Professional Sport Teams, etc
Education: Public/Private School Systems
Internet:
It could be reasonably argued that America is fully regulated and controlled by various LEGALIZED white GANGS.
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@ Dave
I did some research and the gang we call police have been out of control for quite sometime. I argue that this has been going on for a long time. I think with smart phones with cameras being so readily available is why we are seeing it more via youtube. I found this from back in 2013
http://politicalblindspot.com/cop-shoots-kills-college-student-for-speaking-disrespectfully/
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@Sharina,
Yeah, Indeed, it has been going on for generations / centuries, it is just that we have social media now that exposes some of this.
And, unfortunately, it goes on everywhere.
So, do you think the USA could ever get like China, ie.,
BAN / Block all social media platforms that do not originate in China (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, WordPress, etc.).
Engage an army of internet police to monitor and control all social media and internet information, including emails?
BTW, can someone give us an update on the Eric Garner case?
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@ Jefe
“So, do you think the USA could ever get like China, ie.,”—I think it could and I think it is slowly, but surely is happening now. People just ignore it because they are relatively content. We are currently dealing with issues of the government monitoring phone calls and websites that we visit. There have been petitions and black outs (no use of social media) and it, IMO, does not stop them. I actually wager that we are being cut off even today from a lot of things and not even know it. For example we have so many trolls complain about how Africa is bad etc., but we have had many correct that false belief.
Americans are being programmed, but those that realize it are labeled conspiracy theorist or just crazy. I use to be one that saw them as such, but now I am beginning to wonder if I am just waking up from the programming.
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Update: http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2014/08/19/staten-island-da-grand-jury-to-review-eric-garners-death/
So it is going to the grand jury.
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@George Ryder
No surprise, but it should be a wake up call.
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@George Ryder
“grand juries across the nation are signing off on a police state & nobody seems to care at all.”—Because people are caught up in the wrong things. I will admit that Mike brown was not the best poster child for this movement, but it is a movement none the less and black people need to try to make it clear what this movement is about. Even if they did I believe people will only focus on Brown and ignore the bigger issue behind it.
“cameras on police is no longer a solution obviously, as police can choke people to death in broad daylight in front of a live camera & still get away with it.”—That is why I said on another post that cameras will mean very little. I just heard a case where the cop tried to erase evidence of their crime from the tablet of the individual that recorded the situation. Lucky for him the recording went to his cloud and he was able to share it. We just need to stop the cycle of cops investigating themselves.
“if it’s a civil war they want we’re heading in the right direction.”—-That is my fear and I think people are going to legally gain arms to fight back against the police.
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@Sharina
Agreed that if full video footage of a man being killed isn’t enough to indict I don’t know what is. Bill De Blasio seems more like a joke every day.
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There is full video footage and we all witnessed it and yet no indictment. How will police wearing body cameras help if they let this travesty of justice go unpunished?
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And how will laws against chokeholds help if the police can use them and still get away with murder?
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The latest spin on this is that the banned chokehold used wasn’t really a banned chokehold. Evidentally you can stil choke people by holding them around the neck and squeezing, just as long as the carotid artery is not compressed. Then there is no problem. This was just an accidental overuse of of a perfectly legal version of ANOTHER choke hold that is OK to use. Do you see? can’t we all just get along now?
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Breathless Justice
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Another cop walks away from unjustly taking a black life. SMDH.
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A source i read said 14 whites 4 people of color 5 blacks. Not sure how true this is seeing as no other source seems to provide jury make-up. At any rate some of the same white people who did not want to fight for a cause because of mike brown are still refusing to fight for this one stating “he resisted arrest.” “he was selling illegal cigs” etc.
I think some white people like to fashion themselves unbiased because it sounds good.
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I am not going to condone any grand jury decision to acquit a cop who committed murder, but the events surrounding Eric Garner are indeed timely.
Regarding equipping cops with video cameras, it might not do much good. The entire Eric Garner incident was videoed and shared with millions, the cop performed an illegal chokehold which ended up killing someone.
Yet he gets away scot free.
We could watch and hear every detail of the next police brutality event revealing illegal and criminal acts performed by the police, with no indictment. The cameras are not going to do much good.
The solution is not going to be equipping cops with video cameras.
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so I guess cancer causing cigarettes are more valuable than black life… ok. whenever ppl bring up that he was selling cigs I realize how far we have not come, black folks have been killed for the simplest things, from whistling, to playing with toy weapons to walking home, to fighting for civil rights. U realize that ppl are still against the black folks that are out there protesting for rights the same as ppl in our grandparents generation. They are still being attacked and threatened, the only difference is I don’t see water hoses, though ppl have suggested using those against protestors. None of it surprises me history repeats itself right?
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Just Wow.
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I don’t really read or listen to Tim Wise but he wrote an article to respond to the matter and he made a good point.
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@sb32199
“Justin Volpe, who attacked Abner Louima with the wooden handle from a toilet plunger.”
No surprise at all to see a completely “apples and oranges” comparison from you. Louima was already handcuffed and inside a precinct, when he was sodomized with a broomstick by Volpe. How does that compare to the Garner incident? It doesn’t.
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Spike Lee’s character Radio Raheem character in the film “Do The Right Thing”. Mirrors the real life death of Eric Garner. So very sad.
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How curious…
(Reuters) – “The white New York City police officer who put unarmed black Staten Island resident Eric Garner in a chokehold moments before his death has been accused by other black men of violating their civil rights while he was on patrol…’
“Court filings obtained by Reuters on Friday show that four black men have sued Pantaleo over two separate 2012 incidents over claims of being stopped, strip-searched and arrested without cause…”
http://news.yahoo.com/nyc-officer-cleared-chokehold-death-sued-other-black-204814547.html?clear=cache
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Ramsey Orta the guy who documented Garner’s murder is being indicted on weapons, he says the charges are false and are retaliation for his part in the documenting of Garner’s death. According to Huffington Post thread police alleged that Orta slipped a .25 caliber hand gun to a teenage accomplice’s waistband outside a New York hotel.
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If Orta hadn’t got the video of Garner’s killing we wouldn’t know about this heinous crime by the murderous cops.
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“And how will laws against chokeholds help if the police can use them and still get away with murder?”
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
@Abagond
Laws??
These renegades are ABOVE the Law.
Haven’t you realized yet that mundane “laws” never apply to privileged organizations/people unless you’ve really pissed off more POWERFUL people?
Bernie Madoff, stock market scammer extraordinaire, and Eliot Spitzer, a former governor convicted of using a prostitute somehow wound up on the wrong side of their elitist betters, unlike thousands of others who ARE doing these same exact things – but no one bothers to go after.
Laws (generally) aren’t for the rich and powerful or their ENFORCEMENT arm (the Police?Military).
Laws are basically only for the little people, the CHUMPS, to keep us controlled, off-balance, in line, in check and incarcerated!
Do you believe otherwise?
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Jadapoo1
You say he sold untaxed cigarettes? Then his death was his own fault. It seems like a “harmless” enough crime,
——————————————————————————————
No, actually, its a really big deal because it involves COMMERCE. “buying and selling.”
Commerce is one of the best “portals” to observe and study the system of racism white supremacy; some say it is more revealing than sex? To a certain extent, the over representation of black people in public sector employment has shielded them from this reality; but I suspect thats about to change.
As the U.S economy continues to contract, more and more black people are going to be forced to engage in private commerce (as Mr. Garner was doing) or ” vending” as it is commonly called. It is then they will see how commerce is structured to function in support of white supremacy.
Right now, large numbers of black people are paid to stay out of the PRODUCTIVE side of the commerce equation through various government programs such as food stamps, section 8, welfare…
But when the racists run out of money, or destroy its value thru inflation; all these black people are going to be forced out of the consumptive side of commerce and into the productive side; SELLING cigarettes, SELLING vegetables, SELLING goods and services…
This will be a problem (it already is but will get worse)
The white supremacists can easily choke you out with “fees”, licenses, regulations, taxes… but they are not beyond physically choking you to death on the sidewalk for tampering with THEIR commerce system.
I will post a suggestion for black people and private commerce in my follow up.
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http://gawker.com/this-cop-could-not-have-made-a-stupider-fucking-t-shirt-1672393523
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[…] Live in completely lawless communities, or STFU whenever police kill young blacks they already have subdued, or shoot down young blacks who are doing nothing wrong. You can have police who continue […]
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Update (July 19th 2015): Even though the medical examiner ruled Eric Garner’s death a homicide, the grand jury refused to bring charges against the police. Last week, the city settled out of court with Garner’s family for $5.9 million. Daniel Pantaleo wants his job back.
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Daniel Pantaleo needs his soul back…it’s roasting in hell right about now.
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Wow, they don’t mind parting with the payola, but don’t want to impart Full justice!? Wowzers! SMH
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[…] (Ferguson, MO) 2014: Tyree Woodson (Baltimore, MD) 2014: John Crawford III (Beavercreek, OH) 2014: Eric Garner (New York, NY) 2014: Yvette Smith (Bastrop, TX) 2014: Donitre Hamilton (Milwaukee, WI) 2014: Jordan […]
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[…] (Ferguson, MO) 2014: Tyree Woodson (Baltimore, MD) 2014: John Crawford III (Beavercreek, OH) 2014: Eric Garner (New York, NY) 2014: Yvette Smith (Bastrop, TX) 2014: Donitre Hamilton (Milwaukee, WI) 2014: Jordan […]
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[…] Live in completely lawless communities, or STFU whenever police kill young blacks they already have subdued, or shoot down young blacks who are doing nothing wrong. You can have police who continue […]
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Update: The Eric Garner case is now before a federal grand jury. The NYPD, meanwhile, last month charged one officer with wrongdoing: Kizzy Adonis. She was one of the two sergeants in charge of the scene. She is Black, possibly the only Black police officer who was there. The charges are disciplinary and internal, not criminal.
https://abagond.wordpress.com/2016/01/13/kizzy-adonis/
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Ramsey Orta, the person that filmed the murder of Eric Garner will be the only person jailed in connection to his death. The New York police harrassed and hounded Orta and his family for the past two years.
According to Orta:
http://www.blackagendareport.com/ramsey_orta_goes_to_prison
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[…] (Ferguson, MO) 2014: Tyree Woodson (Baltimore, MD) 2014: John Crawford III (Beavercreek, OH) 2014: Eric Garner (New York, NY) 2014: Yvette Smith (Bastrop, TX) 2014: Donitre Hamilton (Milwaukee, WI) 2014: Jordan […]
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[…] he was the Imago Dei. Any one of the above points should have been enough to keep alive that day. Selling cigarettes is not a capital offense, bootlegging CDs is not a capital offense, a traffic violation is not […]
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Erica Garner has passed away she was the daughter of Eric Garner. She was also an outspoken activist she died at the age of 27 from a heart attack. May she Rest In Peace and Power.
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@ Mary
Thank you for the news. I heard she was in the hospital.
https://abagond.wordpress.com/2017/12/30/in-memoriam-erica-garner/
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[…] in order:http://countercurrentnews.com/2014/08/ferguson-store-owner-says-he-doesnt-believe-thats-mike-brown-on-surveillance-video/http://www.inquisitr.com/1413862/michael-brown-robbery-conspiracy-theory/http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/18/1322560/-Ferguson-Store-Owner-Says-NO-ONE-From-His-Store-Called-Cops-To-Report-Cigar-Thefthttp://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2014/08/_5_eyewitness_accounts_of_michael_brown_s_shooting.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/us/michael-brown-autopsy-shows-he-was-shot-at-least-6-times.html?_r=0http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mike-brown-notched-a-hard-fought-victory-just-days-before-he-was-shot-a-diploma/2014/08/12/574d65e6-2257-11e4-8593-da634b334390_story.htmlhttp://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/11/24/cleveland-shot-boy/19471925/https://abagond.wordpress.com/2014/07/23/eric-garner/https://abagond.wordpress.com/2012/03/28/rekia-boyd/http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/10/10/3578877/black-teens-were-21-times-more-likely-to-be-shot-dead-by-the-cops-reported-deaths-suggest/http://gawker.com/darren-wilson-got-married-last-month-1662711418http://www.ibtimes.com/officer-darren-wilson-gofundme-donations-halted-organizers-sort-out-legal-questions-1676430 […]
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Here’s an article about what Ramsey Orta, the guy who filmed Garner’s murder, has been facing since he made the video public.
https://www.theverge.com/2019/3/13/18253848/eric-garner-footage-ramsey-orta-police-brutality-killing-safety
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@anglesanddimensions – thank you for this update. As a former Staten Islander, and having witnessed the NYPD tactics on Staten, including undeserved harassment of family, friends and innocent bystanders – this is a reveal that is long overdue.
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@Angelsanddimensions: Thanks for sharing this.
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So, I wrote this five years ago today. Pantaleo is still a police officer. Mayor de Blasio says it is out of his hands.
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Update: Yesterday the NYPD fired Pantaleo for using a chokehold. They were waiting on the conclusion of the US Department of Justice investigation, which ended last month with no charges being brought.
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[…] (Ferguson, MO) 2014: Tyree Woodson (Baltimore, MD) 2014: John Crawford III (Beavercreek, OH) 2014: Eric Garner (New York, NY) 2014: Yvette Smith (Bastrop, TX) 2014: Jordan Baker (Houston, TX) 2013: Barrington […]
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