No One Can Breathe

                

                    


Excerpt of an Astral Knife soundscape track set to some footage I got during the first night of protests over the murder of Eric Garner. I was in midtown, just got done caring for Abuelita. I walked over to Times Square and just joined in the first march I came across, moving up against traffic with arms in the air chanting "HANDS UP DON'T SHOOT" (Michael Brown), "I CAN'T BREATHE!" (Eric Garner), and "NO JUSTICE NO PEACE, NO RACIST POLICE". And though I knew it wouldn't be likely to crash the Rockefeller tree lighting ceremony, once I learned that was the plan, it was good to disrupt the yuppies and monied tourists lollygagging around the area. Their comments ranged from confused to inconvenienced to a bit scared...and good. I know at a lot of the activist events we do we're talking to the same crowd of people that already agree...these were the people who needed to be a little shook up.



I made my way downtown on foot to meet Eric, who with a friend of ours were in Union Square. Passing the library I got that footage that opens the video of a sea of cops swarming on the steps, then joined two women silently standing and staring at the cops with the arms up gesture.



We have a lawless country when the law itself is lawless. While this sort of injustice, particularly against black youth, is nothing new, it seems there's been a rash of police killing without consequence, all over the country. Aiyana Jones, Kimani Gray, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Rumain Brisbon...



I don't know what else I can add.