Democracy Now!
Rayshard Brooks Before His Death: The System Treats Us “As If We Are Animals”
“New footage has surfaced of Rayshard Brooks, a 27-year-old Black man who was killed by former Atlanta cop Garett Rolfe June 12 outside a Wendy’s, speaking out on his struggles with the criminal justice system. Rolfe was charged Wednesday with felony murder and 10 other counts for killing Brooks. In a February interview with the group Reconnect, Brooks spoke about how his experience being locked up in prison left him in debt and with limited options for employment due to his criminal record. “I just feel like some of the system could look at us as individuals. We do have lives. … It’s just a mistake we made,” Brooks said. “It’s really sort of eerie to hear Rayshard in his own voice talk about not being treated like an animal,” says Rashad Robinson, president of the racial justice organization Color of Change.”
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