WASHINGTON, DC, United States (AP) — George Floyd's brother challenged Congress yesterday to “stop the pain” as lawmakers consider a sweeping law enforcement overhaul, so the man he loved and looked up to won't be just “another name” on a growing list of black Americans killed during interactions with police.
Philonise Floyd's appearance before a House hearing came a day after funeral services for his older brother, the 46-year-old African American whose death has become a worldwide symbol in demonstrations calling for changes to police practices and an end to racial prejudices.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler gavelled in the session, many lawmakers and witnesses masked during the COVID-19 outbreak, as Democrats review the Justice in Policing Act, a far-ranging package of proposals amid a national debate on policing and racial inequity.
In Washington, lawmakers also heard testimony from civil rights and law enforcement leaders as Congress considers changes to police practices and accountability after Floyd's death in police custody and the mass protests that followed.
For hours, witnesses described what one called a “lynching” over what happened to Floyd on May 25, and others placed his death alongside those of other African Americans that have created a tally becoming difficult for lawmakers in Congress to ignore.
