On July 17, 2014, Eric Garner, a 43-0ld black man, a father of six, was arrested on suspicion of illegally selling loose cigarettes. In a video of his arrest taking by a witness, the arresting police officer. Mr. Pantaleo, who is white, is seen with his arms wrapped around Garner’s neck as he struggled on the street in Staten Island. You can hear MR. Garner screaming, “I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe,” which were the last words that came out of Mr. Garner’s mouth. He later died in the hospital. “I Can’t Breathe” the movement was formed, and protesting police brutality spread around the nation to tell the world that Black Lives really Matter. The history of racism and brutality on the black community is ugly and deep. As James Baldwin said, it is ruining the American dream for white America. The country moved on and Mr. Garner’s last words were forgotten. Now, with the Coronavirus pandemic that devastated and infected millions of people, crossing boarder, nationalities, races, rich and poor, royal families, heads of states, and politicians. Millions of people are quarantined and almost 100,000 dead, mostly drowning in their own lungs, screaming like Mr. Garner was. “I can’t breathe” not because of a racist white police officer’s lack of dignity and compassion. But for corporate greed, and lack of medical equipment and ventilators. America, the wealthiest, most powerful nation on earth, spending trillions of dollars on arms and ware, was not spared and desperately asking for help from “Shithole countries.”
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