CPOY 75 Domestic Picture Story Bronze: Who Will Survive in America
Everyone remembers the day. For a moment the entire country stopped while watching the video of George Floyd. In a time when everyone was terrified of the coronavirus, there was another fear that every black person has everyday, and the fear was shown on a 8:46 iPhone video. In the same way as Sean Bell, Oscar Grant, Eric Gardner, and Stephon Clark, there has always been instances of police brutality in America that received national uproar. What followed became one of the biggest uprisings in America since the LA riots. I remember when I first heard about the Breonna Taylor shooting. I saw on the local news the following day after her death, which was way before her death received widespread attention. I saw friends on Facebook who knew the boyfriend Kenneth Walker, and I could feel the pain they wrote in their post. I knew the story would receive local attention, but what I was unaware of during the time was the video of George Floyd would lead to an even bigger catalyst in uprising in my hometown of Louisville, and every major city in America.
A protester throws firecrackers inside the Old Courthouse in downtown Louisville, Ky. People surrounded the building and threw rocks and fireworks into the building before the Louisville police threw tear gas at the crowd for them to disperse. Hundreds surrounded the Courthouse and the Louisville Police Department Headquarters while throwing firecrackers, rocks, and bottles through the windows. The community in Louisville would follow suit with protesting after the initial uprising in Minneapolis. Louisville already had their own ongoing issue with the shooting death of Breonna Taylor, but the tension during the last week of May of 2020 lead to intense rioting and protest in the city.
