Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey Kneels, Appears to Cry at George Floyd’s Coffin

Mayor Jacob Frey at Casket of George Floyd
ABC 13
Robert Kraychik

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) appeared to cry while wearing a mask as he knelt before George Floyd’s golden casket during Friday’s memorial service for Floyd. Frey placed his right hand on the casket while his head trembled.

The Associated Press reported:

The mural of George Floyd projected above his golden coffin, where mourners knelt and cried, paused and prayed at his memorial service Thursday had a simple message: “I can breathe now.”

…

It was not the coronavirus that killed Floyd, the family’s attorney Ben Crump said, but the “pandemic of racism and discrimination.”

WATCH:

“My Life Is In Your Hands,” a gospel song by Kirk Franklin, was sung by a church choir.

MSNBC’s Al Sharpton was in attendance at Floyd’s memorial, sharing video of himself wearing a mask with the logo of his National Action Network organization.

Attendants of Floyd’s memorial included Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN); Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX), Ayana Pressley (D-MA) and Joyce Beatty (D-OH), rappers T.I. and Ludacris, actor Tyrese Gibson, comedians Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish, and actress Marsai Martin.

On Saturday, protesters told Frey he was no longer welcome to demonstrate against Floyd’s death after he refused to commit to defunding Minneapolis’s police department.

Last week, Frey urged demonstrators to practice social distancing and wear masks to reduce coronavirus transmission following protests and riots.

Frey, who wore a mask for his Twitter profile photo, framed Floyd’s death in racial terms.

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