Hundreds of mourners line up to see George Floyd's casket
Hundreds of mourners have lined up for hours outside a church for a public viewing of George Floyd’s casket two weeks after he was killed at the hands of police.
As the doors opened at The Fountain of Praise church in Houston, Texas, on Monday (local time) where Floyd spent most of his life, he was lying in an open gold-coloured casket dressed in a brown suit.
Mourners, many wearing masks and T-shirts with the words "I Can't Breathe", stood 1.8 metres apart as they paused briefly to view the casket.
Some made the sign of the cross as they passed by. On the stage behind the casket were two identical murals of Floyd wearing a black cap that read "Houston" and angel wings drawn behind him.
Floyd's funeral and burial will be held on Tuesday (local time).
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"We're anticipating close to 10,000 and that's what we're preparing for," La'Torria Lemon, a spokeswoman for the funeral home, told CNN.
Images from the public viewing showed emotional mourners being comforted by members of the police force who attended in their officer attire.
Others showed masses of people waiting in line both inside and outside the church to pay their respects.
The viewing was open to the public for a six-hour period, with visitors required to wear a mask and gloves to comply with coronavirus-related guidelines.
Floyd died on May 25 after a Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into the black man’s neck for several minutes even after he stopped responding.
His death has sparked international protests and drawn new attention to the treatment of African-Americans by police and the criminal justice system.
Previous memorials have taken place in Minneapolis and Raeford, North Carolina, near where Floyd was born.
At the Minneapolis tribute on Thursday (local time), those in attendance stood in silence for eight minutes and 46 seconds, the amount of time Floyd was alleged to be on the ground under the control of police.
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