Philonise Floyd, the brother of George Floyd, spoke with emotion before the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday morning during a hearing on police brutality and racial profiling, urging lawmakers to make sure the death of his brother prompts meaningful change.
“I couldn’t take care of George the day he was killed, but maybe by speaking with you today, I can help make sure that his death isn’t in vain,” said Floyd, who laid his older brother to rest just one day earlier in Houston. “To make sure that he is more than another face on a T-shirt. More than another name on a list that won’t stop growing.”
The aim of the hearing is to “examine the crisis of racial profiling, police brutality and lost trust between police departments and the communities they serve,” according to a statement from the House Judiciary Committee. Eleven other witnesses are set to testify on police reform.
As protests calling for an end to police brutality continue to rage across the United States and around the world, Floyd spoke before Congress about the emotional impact of losing George, and of watching the video that showed his death after a Minneapolis police officer kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes.
“I can’t tell you the kind of pain you feel when you watch something like that. When you watch your big brother, who you’ve looked up to your whole life, die. Die begging for your mom,” he said. “I’m tired of the pain I’m feeling now and I’m tired of the pain I feel every time another black person is killed for no reason. I’m here today to ask you to make it stop. Stop the pain. Stop us from being tired.”
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