US Embassy salutes local Black Lives Matter protesters

THE US Embassy in Port of Spain has saluted nationals who stood opposite its building in a peaceful demonstration this past week, following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

The embassy, in a media release issued on Friday said, "They (demonstrators) join many Americans who are similarly outraged by what transpired and we have seen them express their shock, grief, frustration, and anger in many parts of the United States."

Floyd died after a police officer knelt on his neck for almost nine minutes as he lay face first on the floor and in handcuffs.

The 46-year-old reportedly attempted to make a purchase at a store with a counterfeit US$20 note, following which the police arrived and put him under arrest.

He pleaded with the officer and gasped for air, saying he could not breathe. He was motionless for about three minutes before the officer finally took his knee off Floyd's neck. Four police officers involved in the incident have since been charged in connection with Floyd's murder.

The incident sparked fiery protests around the country and around the globe, with some locals taking to the Queen's Park Savannah, opposite the embassy, in solidarity with the African American community – which many believe to suffer systematically oppression in the US, particularly at the hands of police.

In the media release, the embassy said, "This week at US Embassy in Port of Spain, Trinbagonians rallied to express their dismay at the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis and call for justice. We salute their peaceful expression of solidarity in support of the ideals of equal justice.

"We at the US Embassy are not immune to these feelings and like the Secretary of State we find the actions that led to the death of Mr Floyd abhorrent. His death was a tragedy and never should have happened."

It assured that the highest US officeholders on both the state and federal levels have pledged accountability for what transpired.

"Now it is time for healing, for compassion, greater communication, and increased understanding. It has been said that this episode exposes some of the faults in the United States. We must agree," the US Embassy added.

"Recent events remind us that we don't only have a history of difficult race relations in the US; we are in the present still struggling to realise our idealised version of ourselves as a tolerant land of equality and inclusion, with peaceful respect for the rule of law.

"What has truly made the American multi-ethnic, multi-racial democratic experiment impressive, in our eyes, has been its ability to reform itself and become a fairer, more inclusive, and more equal society over time."

The embassy said it hopes the tragedy will mark a "turning point."

Quoting activist Martin Luther King Jr, it ended, "'the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice.' We sincerely hope that all of us, Americans and Trinbagonians, will learn from this episode and use it as inspiration to create a better world."