‘As soon as I took this shot, I knew it was special – something pretty much all Black people could relate to. This man was arrested for daring to question authority. I’ve been arrested for the same thing’
I took this on the first day of the protests in Foley Square, New York, following the murder of George Floyd. I’ve witnessed protests before but nothing like this. It was intense, volatile and angry. People were sick and tired – and ready to fight for their rights.
The video of his killing came at a specific moment. People were already angry after the shooting of Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia. And in New York, a viral video of a white woman who called the police about a Black birdwatcher had made people even angrier. But when that video appeared, something changed. Black people knew it could have happened to any of us.
