Commemoration marks 10 years since death of Eric Garner at the hands of police
NEW YORK - Wednesday marks 10 years since the death of Eric Garner.
Garner died at the hands of an NYPD officer after being taken down in what is now an illegal chokehold. His dying cry of "I can't breathe" became a slogan of the Black Lives Matter movement when protests swept the city.
Garner was 43 when he died in 2014 during an arrest for allegedly selling loose cigarettes. The incident was captured on cell phone video. Garner could be heard telling officers "I can't breathe" 11 times. His death was ruled a homicide.
Authorities determined NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo used a banned chokehold, but he was never charged. He was eventually fired in 2019, five years after the deadly encounter.
Carr says she's still seeking justice for her son. She says there were other officers involved her son's death that day, and she believes they should also be fired.
"Still calling on them to be fired. I'm really not satisfied with Pantaleo just being fired. I think charges should've been," Garner's mother Gwen Carr said Wednesday.
A march was planned to commemorate Garner on Staten Island Wednesday. The morning march went from the Staten Island Ferry Terminal to Eric Garner Way in Tompkinsville. A memorial barbecue with food, music, sports and speakers was held in the afternoon at Tompkinsville Park.
"It's like deja vu thinking about what happened 10 years ago," Carr said.
"He said he couldn't breathe, then get off of him. Pick him up and arrest him accordingly," Anngeannette Pinkston said.
"He was restrained. How come he lost his life? That question still comes up," Herman Francis said.
Eric Garner's mother Gwenn Carr speaks out
CBS New York's Maurice DuBois spoke with Carr, who reflected on what the Black Lives Matter protests meant to her.
"I was elated by the protests," she said. "It made me think that people cared."
"When you ask yourself, why did this happen? What do you end up?" DuBois asked.
"He was a Black man in America. And they targeted him. Because why would you could kill for a loose cigarette," Carr said.
"Even a decade after the tragic and unnecessary killing of Eric Garner, his final words, 'I can't breathe,' continue to remind us of the importance of the work against police brutality and systemic racism. Eric was a beloved father, and his life mattered. In a truly just society, he would still be with us today," Rev. Al Sharpton said. "We remember Eric Garner not just for the injustice he suffered, but for the activism and change that his death inspired. And we celebrate his family's extraordinary perseverance, which continues to help pave the way for a more just and equitable society."