In an attempt to save face, Minneapolis police re-traumatized Black people
August 28, 2020Photo By Stephen Maturen/Getty Images News/Getty Images
On Wednesday night, a shooting drew crowds along Nicollet Avenue, a major street known for its shopping center in Minneapolis’s downtown. As rumors that the police had shot yet another Black man flowed, other accounts testified that the man died by suicide. With the city still smoldering from protests prompted by Minneapolis police’s killing of George Floyd in May, the department was eager to clear its name.
But rather than issuing a statement, the Minneapolis Police Department released graphic surveillance footage of the still unidentified man’s suicide. In a now-deleted tweet, MPD labeled the man a murder suspect, who completed suicide when approached by police — at least one of whom had their guns drawn. The video was also shared by the city of Minneapolis’s official Twitter page.