'It was so fast': George Floyd's grieving brother details Trump phone call
George Floyd’s brother has revealed the details of a phone call he had with Donald Trump, describing the call as “fast” and felt the US president was trying to get him off the phone.
Mr Floyd was killed while in police custody, a video that shows white Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on his neck as he struggled to breathe has sparked widespread anger.
The reaction has seen violent protests and riots that began in Minneapolis and have continued across several cities from Washington DC to New York to Tulsa to Los Angeles.
Philonise Floyd spoke to US news outlet MSNBC about his brother, tearfully describing the situation as “painful”.
“We’re fuelled by pain right now and we should just be peaceful, but it’s hard right now,” he said.
When asked about his phone call with Mr Trump, Philonise shrugged.
“It was so fast he didn’t give me an opportunity to even speak,” Philonise said.
“It was hard. I was trying to talk to him, but he just kept pushing me off like ‘I don’t want to hear what you’re talking about’ and I just told him, I want justice.
“I said that I can’t believe they committed a modern-day lynching in broad daylight.”
During another phone call, this time with US presidential candidate Joe Biden, Philonise said he begged the former vice-president for help.
“I have never had to beg a man before but I said, ‘Please get justice for my brother, please, please. I do not want to see him on a shirt just like the other guys.’ Nobody deserves that,” he said.
Chauvin has since been charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, but Philonise said he wanted the charge upgraded to first-degree murder and the other three officers in the video to be prosecuted.
“A life for a life, that’s what I want,” he said.
“You killed him... that was just hatred, nobody deserves that. I’m tired of this, he didn’t deserve that.”
Chaos continues across the US as Trump vows to stop riots ‘cold’
Curfews were imposed on major US cities as clashes over police brutality escalated across America with demonstrators ignoring warnings from Mr Trump that his government would stop the violent protests "cold".
Minneapolis, the epicentre of the unrest, was gripped by a fifth consecutive night of violence on Saturday (local time) with police in riot gear firing tear gas and stun grenades at protesters venting fury at the death of Mr Floyd.
Los Angeles, Chicago and Atlanta were among two dozen cities ordering people to stay indoors overnight as more states called in National Guard soldiers to help control the civil unrest not seen in the United States for years.
From Seattle to New York, tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets demanding tougher murder charges and more arrests over the death of Mr Floyd, who stopped breathing after Chauvin knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.
In Los Angeles, officers fired rubber bullets and swung batons during a testy standoff with demonstrators who set fire to a police car.
Police and protesters clashed in numerous cities, including Chicago and New York, with officers responding to projectiles with pepper spray while shop windows were smashed in Philadelphia.
with AFP
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