The screen at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans honors Tyre Nichols before an NBA basketball game Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023. Nichols had a passion for photography and was described by friends as joyful and lovable, according to reporting by The Associated Press.
Photo provided/Matthew Hinton/APA renewed effort to push legislation addressing police brutality came Tuesday as the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus called for change following the death of Tyre Nichols in Tennessee.
29-year-old Nichols, who was Black, was beaten by Memphis police officers for three minutes after they stopped him for an alleged traffic violation on Jan. 7, according to reporting by The Associated Press. Video released after pressure from Nichols' family showed officers holding him down and repeatedly punching him, kicking him and striking him with batons as he screamed for his mother. The attack continued even after he collapsed.
It took more than 20 minutes after the altercation before any sort of medical attention was provided. Nichols, an amateur photographer and FedEx worker, was hospitalized in critical condition. He died on Jan. 10. A timeline of events in Nichols' case was produced by the AP.
The stepfather of Tyre Nichols, Rodney Wells, speaks Monday, Jan. 30, at a prayer gathering at the site where Nichols was beaten by Memphis police officers.
Photo provided/Gerald Herbert/APFive officers involved — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr., Emmitt Martin III and Justin Smith — have been fired and charged with second-degree murder and other crimes. They face up to 60 years in prison if convicted of second-degree murder.
Memphis police suspended two other officers Monday and said the department is still investigating what happened. The Memphis Fire Department also fired three emergency response workers who arrived on the scene for failing to assess Nichols’ condition.
"On Saturday, the executive board of the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus had an emergency call and we talked strategy," Sen. Sarah Anthony, D-Lansing, said during a Tuesday press conference. "But we also leaned on each other. Because there is a different weight to be Black and a lawmaker right now. First Black speaker, first appropriations chair, those are wonderful titles. But at the end of the day what we will be judged by is did we change the conditions of our people."
"Does my little brother feel safer driving the streets of Lansing with a hoodie on at 1 or 2 o'clock?" Anthony continued. "Does he feel safe to do so? Do the taxes that we pay for law enforcement actually protect and serve us? Or are we living in a state of fear and anxiety to which all of our mothers still call us to make sure that we got home OK?"
"We want you to know that the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus decided two things on Saturday," Anthony added. "First that we would rededicate ourselves to introducing robust policies to address the issues of police brutality in the state of Michigan. Today is a new day. And we demand action on the policies that we have introduced year after year after year."
"The second thing that we decided on Saturday is to partner with grassroots organizations and people who are interested in pushing an agenda that makes safer communities for everyone regardless of their race, what they wear or their profession it should not matter. Anyone who is willing to partner with us will have a seat at the table to do just that."
"The Michigan Legislative Black Caucus lifts Tyre Nichols’ family up in light and love as they seek justice for his murder," the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus wrote in a statement Saturday.
"Platitudes of ‘this is not who we are’ are hollow," the caucus continued. "It is exactly who this country is, with modern policing being firmly ensconced in the racist roots of slave patrols and the Fugitive Slave Act itself. But it does not have to be this way. It shouldn’t be this way. The Michigan Legislative Black Caucus is committed to working with our community partners to achieve the meaningful changes that our community demands and deserves."
Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II thanked the caucus Tuesday on Twitter for continuing the conversation on police brutality.
The family of Nichols plans to lay him to rest Wednesday, three weeks after he died. At the funeral, the Rev. Al Sharpton, founder and president of the National Action Network, will deliver the eulogy. Ben Crump, a national civil rights attorney who represents the Nichols family, will deliver a call to action.
Those expected to be in attendance include Vice President Kamala Harris; Tamika Palmer, the mother of Breonna Taylor; and Philonise Floyd, the brother of George Floyd, according to reporting by the AP.
The deaths of Taylor in Kentucky and Floyd in Minnesota at the hands of police sparked protests across the nation about racial injustice.
