George Floyd was already cuffed on the ground, a knee to the neck when you're already restrained is absolutely unnecessary. Despite this mans past, nobody deserves to Die because they have a past. That man was begging for his life and Chauvin did not care. He deserves to go down. Anyone who thinks differently, you’re apart of the problem.#justiceforGeorgeFloyd
― Darnella Frazier in a Facebook post during the Chauvin trial.
Darnella Frazier is an African-American woman who gained prominence during the Black Lives Matter movement. She is best known for capturing a viral video of the death of a black man named George Floyd at the hands of police, kicking off worldwide protests.
George Floyd[]
On May 25, 2020, the 17-year-old Frazier was walking with her young cousin when they saw a black man (Floyd) being arrested by four police officers. Floyd was handcuffed and laid on the ground, having protested when the officers tried to put him in the van. One of the officers, Derek Chauvin, placed his knee on Floyd's neck. Frazier took a video of the events that followed. Floyd begged Chauvin to take his knee off, saying at least 16 times that he couldn't breathe. Chauvin refused. After an ambulance arrived and Floyd was found to have no pulse, Chauvin refused to remove his knee until ordered to by medics.
Following the event, Frazier posted her video online. It quickly went viral and sparked protests across the world. The slogan "I can't breathe" began to be used for the first time since the Eric Garner protests of 2014, and Frazier received a PEN/Benenson Courage Award for recording the arrest and murder of Floyd. Chauvin and the other officers were fired and all four were charged with murder. In March 2021, the State v. Chauvin trial began.
On March 30, 2021, Frazier took the stand to testify against Chauvin. As an underage witness she testified off-camera. Frazier accused Chauvin of being completely impassive towards Floyd and completely ignoring his inability to breathe. After just ten hours of deliberation, Chauvin was found guilty of murder and manslaughter. After the verdict was announced, Frazier wrote a Facebook post in which she wrote “...to know GUILTY ON ALL 3 CHARGES !!! THANK YOU GOD THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.” and “George Floyd we did it!!”.
A GoFundMe fundraiser was created for Frazier to “push back against the racism, bullying, and harassment” that she suffered after sharing the footage of Floyd’s arrest. Hundreds of thousands of dollars had been raised by April 20.
Trivia[]
- Darnella Frazier's uncle, Leneal Frazier, was killed in 2021 when police officer Brian Cummings collided with his vehicle during a car chase. Cummings pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2023 and was jailed for nine months.