Gwen Carr, Eric Garner's mother at the Eric Garner Day Celebration. 9/15/20
Dear John,
My name is Gwen Carr and I am the mother of Eric Garner. Last Tuesday, September 15th, was Eric’s birthday and despite losing my son almost six years ago I still use every birthday to celebrate and honor his life, and to highlight a moment of joy that he could have experienced every year if he were alive today.
I can’t think of a better way to celebrate his life and to honor him and so many other Black people who have been killed by the police than by having September 15th officially become Eric Garner Day.
Sadly, not much has changed since my son was murdered in 2014 - we are still witnessing police use of chokeholds and other forms of deadly violence against Black people with no consequences for law enforcement.
As you probably know all too well, on July 17th, 2014 my son was confronted by police for allegedly selling loose cigarettes on the street. An instance that should’ve required no more than a verbal interaction quickly and inexplicably escalated to my son being placed under arrest and a deadly chokehold was used to subdue him. My son was asthmatic and repeatedly begged officers to release him proclaiming “I can’t breathe”. Despite my son’s pleas, he lost consciousness under the chokehold and laid motionless on the ground for 7 minutes until an ambulance arrived. An hour later, my son was pronounced dead after suffering a heart attack on the way to the hospital.
With the recent murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and many others we are reminded that despite laws being passed to protect people from police brutality, Black people continue to be subjected to racist and harmful actions. My heart breaks for these families, as they have had to mourn while also watching their loved ones become the most recent hashtags. Black people murdered by the police are not simply names--they had lives, dreams, anxieties, and hopes about the future just like my son did, and all of us do.
Countless names and lives deserve proper recognition and honor. Let’s start by making September 15th Eric Garner Day in New York City.
With the passing of Eric Garner Day, it is our hope that our community will collectively take a moment to remember what Eric’s death meant to the nation and how it shifted the conversation on harmful police practices. Imagine what it could look like with schools and work places recognizing the day as an opportunity to have important conversations about racial profiling and police brutality.
Join me in telling the New York City Council to make September 15th Eric Garner Day.
Thank you,
Gwen Carr
p.s. Check out photos from the Eric Garner Day celebration that we held last week. Activists, elected leaders, artists, and community members joined me to celebrate my son and rally to demand Eric Garner's birthday is officially made a holiday.
Musician Bryan Carter and his orchestra
The crowd at the celebration
Musician and Poet Amyra Leon
Resistance Revival Chorus
The crowd at the celebration
Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Please help keep our movement strong.
