Call for UN to Open Human Rights Case and Sanction U.S. (Excerpts)The lawyers for the family of George Floyd sent a letter to the UN on June 3, submitted to the United Nations on behalf of their clients to seek sanctions against the United States for violating the human rights of African Americans. It reads in part: "The family of George Floyd, his legal representatives, and concerned members of civil society are appealing to the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Special Rapporteur on minority issues, Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and all relevant mandate holders to request urgent action regarding the torture and extrajudicial killing of George Floyd, an African American and person of African descent, that occurred on May 25, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States of America." After recounting the details of the killing of George Floyd, the firing of the police officers and the criminal charges brought against them, the letter points out that: "The United States of America has a long pattern and practice of lethal police violence disproportionately applied to persons of African descent. Many of these cases have resulted in the failure of state and local governments to hold accountable police officers who commit human rights violations. For example, in 2014, unarmed African American 18-year-old Michael Brown, accused of stealing from a convenience store, was killed in Ferguson, Missouri and shot six times with his hands up. No police officer was criminally charged. In 2014, unarmed African American Eric Garner was killed in New York City; police accused him of unlawfully selling cigarettes and held him in a chokehold despite the fact that he told the officer 'I can't breathe' eleven times before he died. None of the officers involved were convicted of any wrongdoing. On March 13, 2020, Breonna Taylor, a twenty-six year-old African American woman was shot and killed in her apartment in Louisville, Kentucky by police officers executing a 'no-knock' warrant; she was unarmed and not accused of committing any crime. No officer has been charged in her death. "The extrajudicial killing of African Americans by police officers in the United States constitutes such a pervasive and widespread pattern that White Americans have been emboldened to act as vigilantes. In 2012, seventeen-year-old African American Trayvon Martin, who was unarmed and not committing any crime and was shot and killed by a 'neighborhood watchman.' On February 23, 2020, unarmed twenty-five-year-old African American Ahmaud Arbery was shot and killed by White men while jogging in a Georgia neighborhood. He was committing no crime and evidence revealed that his killers acted on some apparent authority from local law enforcement. "On June 1, 2020 President Donald Trump addressed the nation and asserted that he would protect citizens' second amendment rights, or right to bear arms. Shortly following this statement, Sheriff Grady Judd in Polk County, Florida issued the following statement: 'The people in Polk County like guns...if you try to break into their homes to steal, to set fires, I'm highly recommending they blow you back out of the house with their guns.' We believe that such statements from authorities further incite vigilante behavior and incite extrajudicial killings of African Americans by police and citizens. "The United States of America's failure to appropriately respond to and address police violence and extrajudicial killings of persons of African descent constitutes an abridgement of their human rights. "We urgently request that you support our call for the United States and its state and local governments to: 1) Seek full justice for Mr. George Floyd with all officers involved being charged with 1st degree murder; we further call for systemic changes including but not limited to: 2) end qualified immunity; 3) end provision of military equipment to, and military-type training of police; 4) reinstate federal oversight/consent decrees where warranted; 5) establish civilian review boards to aid in the pursuit of justice for victims; 6) mandate the use of body cameras for all police officers and the immediate release of video footage and audio recordings following incidents involving police killings; 7) mandate training on de-escalation techniques; 8) support an Independent prosecutor for police misconduct cases; 9) increase restrictions on no-knock warrants and
use of non-uniformed police in citizen interactions; 11) immediately implement and follow recommendations made by special procedures of the United Nations that ensure the United States upholds its human rights obligations, including in the context of policing and the elimination of racism." To view the full letter, click
here.
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