Outraged over video showing Tyre Nichols’ fatal beating at the hands of Memphis police officers, hundreds of New Yorkers took to the streets Friday night to decry the widely-condemned act of police brutality.
The Big Apple oscillated with furious anger on Jan. 27 during a citywide demonstration rebuking the actions of the Memphis police officers who were indicted on charges the day prior in two separate protests taking place in Midtown and in Lower Manhattan.
The Memphis Police Department released video footage Friday night of the beating, with five now-fired Memphis officers shown brutally beaten Nichols after a traffic stop.
Ahead of the video’s release, the country and city waited with bated breath, and the city braced for unrest. Mayor Eric Adams weighing in on the attack at 5 p.m., just hours before protesters hit the streets. Adams condemned the officers involved, commended what he sees as swift justice, and urged protesters to remain peaceful.
“My message to New Yorkers is to respect the wishes of Mr. Nichols’ mother,” Adams said. “If you need to express your anger and outrage, do so peacefully. My message to the NYPD has been and will continue to be exercise restraint.”
The mayor stated that he was briefed by the White House and also spoke with city politicians regarding the hour-long video he called disturbing to watch, vowing as a victim of police brutality himself to hold police accountable in the Big Apple.
Demonstrators chant, “Protect and serve, that’s a lie. Cops don’t care if people die” as they march for justice for #TyreNichols #nyc #protest #TyreNicholsVideo pic.twitter.com/LAEEwcxP6O
— Dean_Moses (@Dean_Moses) January 28, 2023
“I’ve been a police officer and have been the victim of police abuse. I know the impact of it. When my brother and I were beaten as young men in the basement of the police station by officers, I was angry. I refused to trust the system. But when I turned to civil rights activist Reverend Herbert Daughtry, he encouraged me to turn my pain into purpose and that’s what I did as a police officer who co-founded One Hundred Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care,” Adams said.
Enraged New Yorkers set off from Times Square just after 7 p.m. taking to the streets swinging signs reading “End police brutality.” The group of about one hundred argued that even though both the victim and perpetrators were Black, the police force is built upon racist foundations.
“Once a person puts on that police uniform they are blue and identify as blue. These five men thought that because they were police officers, they would get away with murdering a man that was on his way home,” one protester said. “And these are police officers, some of them that were arrested, who had records of harming other people.”
While one group charged downtown toward Madison Square Garden, another which formed in Union Square marched uptown—both shadowed closely by the NYPD. Some marchers pushed several television reporters, while arrests were made for disorderly conduct such as climbing atop police vehicles and kicking in the cruiser’s windshield. Protesters made sure to announce their vitriol, chanting “f**k the police, the cops and the clan are the same.”
Later in the evening, as infuriated protesters marched up and downtown, NYPD Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell released a statement also condemning the officers’ actions.
“NYPD and the communities we serve are collectively outraged at the death of Tyre Nichols in the custody of the Memphis Police Department. The disgraceful actions depicted in the released video are an unequivocal violation of our oath to protect those we serve, and a failure of basic human decency,” part of the statement read. “The officers involved have been terminated and charged with murder, among other offenses. Here in New York City, we will have an increased police presence over the next days to ensure that people who choose to are able to express themselves freely and safely.”
More to come on this developing story.
