“I can’t breathe.” These words have become all too familiar for me and many other Americans. This time, these words were choked out by George Floyd, as he lay crushed beneath the weight of three Minneapolis police officers, while a fourth stood by watching. But these words, which have sparked outrage from the streets of Minneapolis to the rest of the nation and the world, are not new.
I, like many other Black Americans, have found myself choking on my own fears and disbelief when faced with the realities of an encounter with law enforcement. At the age of 21, I was pulled over for simply having an improper headlight, and yet the officer felt the need to place his hand on his weapon and call me “boy.” Even today, while I have the privilege of serving as a United States senator, I am not immune to being stopped while driving at home in South Carolina or even while walking onto the grounds of the Capitol. Each time, I hold my breath and each time, I have been able to exhale and go about my business. Thank God!
