On Monday (June 1), George Floyd’s brother, Terrence Floyd, traveled to Minnesota to lay flowers at the site of George’s death. In addition to laying flowers in his brother’s memory, Terrence also held a prayer vigil. During the vigil, Terrence asked for peaceful protests, as well as an end to the violence that followed George’s death at the hands of a white police officer.
Before his vigil began, Terrence told ABC News that he wanted to visit the site of his brother’s tragic death in order to feel his spirit and “just connect with him again.” He also spoke about the protests taking place across the country, telling ABC News: “All of this is not necessary because if his own family and blood is not doing it, then why are you? If his own family and blood are trying to deal with it and be positive about it, and go another route to seek justice, then why are you out here tearing up your community? Because when you’re finished and turn around and want to go buy something, you done tore it up. So now you messed up your own living arrangements. So just relax. Justice will be served.”
Terrence expressed a similar sentiment during an interview with Good Morning America that aired on Monday, as well. Terrence said he feared the violence and looting occurring during some of the protests will start “overshadowing what’s going on” with the peaceful protests. “He was about peace, he was about unity,” he said of his brother. “But the thing’s that’s transpiring now, yeah they may call it unity, but it’s destructive unity. That’s not what my brother was about.”
“He would motivate you to channel — if you’re angry it’s okay to be angry — but channel your anger to do something positive or make a change another way,” Terrence continued. “We’ve been down this road already. He would want to seek justice the way we are, the way we’re trying to do. But channel it another way. The anger, damaging your hometown, it’s not the way he’d want.”
CNN correspondent Sara Sidner shared photos from Terrence’s prayer vigil on Twitter and shared some of his remarks. She quoted Terrence as saying “What are you doing? It’s not going to bring my bother back! it may feel good like when you drink but it hurts. My family is a peaceful family. My family is a God fearing family…Go VOTE.”
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