黑料社区

HOUSTON: The last chance for the public to say goodbye to George Floyd drew thousands of mourners Monday to a church in Houston where he grew up, as his death two weeks ago continues to stoke protests in America and beyond over racial injustice, and spurred France to abruptly halt the use of police choke holds.
Reflecting the weight of the moment, the service drew the families of black victims in other high-profile killings whose names have become seared in America鈥檚 conversation over race 鈥� among them Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Ahmaud Arbery and Trayvon Martin.
鈥淚t just hurts,鈥� said Philonize Floyd, George Floyd鈥檚 brother, sobbing as he ticked off some of their names outside The Fountain of Praise church. 鈥淲e will get justice. We will get it. We will not let this door close.鈥�
Under a blazing Texas sun, mourners wearing T-shirts with Floyd鈥檚 picture or the words 鈥淚 Can鈥檛 Breathe鈥� 鈥� the phrase he said repeatedly while pinned down by a Minneapolis police officer 鈥� waited for hours to pay their respects as Floyd鈥檚 body, dressed in a brown suit, lay in an open gold-colored casket. Some sang 鈥淟ean on Me鈥� and Houston鈥檚 police chief bumped fists and embraced others in line. Funeral home spokeswoman La鈥橳orria Lemon said at least 6,000 attended the service.
Some knew Floyd in the nearby housing projects where he grew up. Others traveled hours or drove in from other states. Those who couldn鈥檛 make it whipped up their own tributes: In Los Angeles, a funeral-style procession of cars inched through downtown as the viewing began in Houston. In Tennessee, residents of Memphis held a moment of silence.
Bracy Burnett approached Floyd鈥檚 casket wearing a homemade denim face mask scrawled with 鈥�8:46鈥� 鈥� the length of time prosecutors say Floyd, who was black, was pinned to the ground under a white officer鈥檚 knee before he died.
鈥淎ll black people are not criminals. All white people are not racists. All cops are not bad. And ignorance comes in all colors. That鈥檚 what I thought about when I viewed the body,鈥� Burnett, 66, said.
Floyd鈥檚 death on May 25 has inspired international protests and drawn new attention to the treatment of African Americans in the US by police and the criminal justice system.
Hours into the viewing, a judge in Minneapolis kept bail at $1 million for Derek Chauvin, the police officer charged with second-degree murder in Floyd鈥檚 death. Chauvin, 44, said almost nothing during the 11-minute hearing while appearing on closed-circuit television from a maximum-security prison.
Two weeks after Floyd鈥檚 death, the impact continued to resonate at home and abroad.
In Paris, France鈥檚 top security official said police would no longer permit choke holds that have been blamed for multiple cases of asphyxiation and have come under renewed criticism after Floyd鈥檚 death.
In Portland, Oregon, the city鈥檚 police chief resigned Monday, just six months into her job, amid criticism of her department鈥檚 handling of protests in Oregon鈥檚 largest city. An African American lieutenant on the force replaced her. The shakeup came as police have been sharply criticized for using what has been called inappropriate force against some protesters as huge demonstrations continue in Portland.
鈥淲ith this happening to him, it鈥檚 going to make a difference in the world,鈥� said Pam Robinson, who grew up with Floyd and handed out bottled water to mourners waiting outside the church. The punishing heat spiked above 90 degrees and got to dozens in line, including one person who was taken to a hospital. Dozens more were helped to a cooling tent.
Comill Adams said she drove more than seven hours from Oklahoma City with her family, including two children ages 8 and 10. They wore matching black T-shirts with 鈥淚 Can鈥檛 Breathe鈥� on the back 鈥� shirts she made up specially for the memorial.
鈥淲e had been watching the protests on TV. We鈥檝e been at home feeling outraged. At times it brought us to tears,鈥� Adams said. 鈥淭he fact this one is causing change, we had to come be a part of it.鈥�
Mourners were required to wear masks over fears of the coronavirus and stood 6 feet apart as they paused briefly to view the casket. On a stage behind the casket two identical murals showed Floyd wearing a black cap that read 鈥淗ouston鈥� and angel wings drawn behind him.
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott was among the first to view the casket, wearing a striped gold-and-crimson tie, the colors of Floyd鈥檚 Houston high school, where Floyd was a standout football player.
鈥淕eorge Floyd is going to change the arc of the future of the United States. George Floyd has not died in vain. His life will be a living legacy about the way that America and Texas responds to this tragedy,鈥� Abbott said.
Floyd鈥檚 death has spurred calls for change nationwide.
The Minneapolis City Council has vowed to dismantle the city鈥檚 800-member police agency. And in Washington, House and Senate Democrats held a moment of silence at the Capitol鈥檚 Emancipation Hall before proposing legislative changes in policing oversight, reading Floyd鈥檚 name and those of others killed during police interactions and kneeling for 8 minutes and 46 seconds 鈥� now a symbol of police brutality.
Besides banning police choke holds, the Justice in Policing Act would limit legal protections for police and create a national database of excessive-force incidents, according to an early draft. It is the most ambitious change to law enforcement sought by Congress in years.
Meanwhile, officials nationwide are already taking steps to outlaw choke holds: California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered the state鈥檚 police training program to stop teaching them and Denver police announced Sunday they were banning them, effective immediately.
Floyd鈥檚 funeral will be Tuesday, followed by burial at the Houston Memorial Gardens cemetery in suburban Pearland, where he will be laid to rest next to his mother, Larcenia Floyd.
Former Vice President Joe Biden met with Floyd鈥檚 family Monday, according to a photo posted on Twitter by the Rev. Al Sharpton. Biden will provide a video message for Floyd鈥檚 funeral service. Previous memorials have taken place in Minneapolis and Raeford, North Carolina, near where Floyd was born.
Cities imposed curfews as several protests last week were marred by spasms of arson, assaults and smash-and-grab raids on businesses. More than 10,000 people have been arrested around the country, according to reports tracked by The Associated Press.
But protests in recent days have been overwhelmingly peaceful 鈥� and over the weekend, several police departments appeared to retreat from aggressive tactics.
Several cities have lifted curfews, including Chicago and New York City, where the governor urged protesters to get tested for the coronavirus as concerns have been raised that demonstrations could lead to an increase in virus cases.