‘He wouldn’t have done it if I was white’: Cop threatens to fire TEAR GAS at protester with two-year-old son on his shoulders as others aim rubber bullet guns at him during George Floyd rally in Long Beach
- Dontae Parks, 29, brought his two-year-old son to a George Floyd protest in Long Beach, California on Sunday
- Parks had a rubber bullet gun aimed at his face as his son sat atop his shoulders
- In a new interview, the protester claims another officer threatened to fire tear gas at his toddler
- Parks is also defending bringing his young child to the rally, saying he left before it spiraled out of control
A protester who faced off with cops at a George Floyd rally says one officer threatened to spray tear gas at his two-year-old son.
Dontae Parks, 29, was carrying his little boy atop his shoulders at the demonstration in Long Beach, California on Sunday when the policeman allegedly made the threat.
‘I was shocked, it did very much upset me,’ Parks told The Sun on Wednesday.
‘I said, “Okay, I would like to see you do that”‘.
Parks says he believes that the officer would not have threatened to spray tear gas at his son if they were white.
‘It would have been a whole different scenario and that’s one of the reasons I was there [at the protest]’ he stated.
Parks was captured in a dramatic photo which showed a different officer pointing a rubber bullet gun at his face while his young son watched on.
Dontae Parks, 29, was carrying his little boy atop his shoulders at the demonstration in Long Beach, California on Sunday when he was threatened by police officers
Parks’ young son was dressed in a Batman costume and brandishing a Black Lives Matter sign
The image was broadcast right around the world, with Parks now telling The Sun about the terrifying moment he was in the firing line.
‘The officer in the photo – he should not be a cop at all,’ he defiantly declared.
‘I feel they let anybody be a cop these days… I could tell just by looking at him he’s ready to shoot at any time.’
Parks has faced some criticism for bringing his two-year-old son to the rally, where officers did shoot other protesters with rubber bullets.
But the insists that he was simply being a dutiful dad.
‘I’m a great father and I take care of my son and I’m raising him to be great,’ he told The Sun.
‘I’m a great father and I take care of my son and I’m raising him to be great,’ Dontae told The Sun
Parks has faced some criticism for bringing his two-year-old son (pictured) to the rally, where officers did shoot other protesters with rubber bullets
Thousands of demonstrators poured into Downtown Long Beach. They came up against heavily armed police officers
Fireworks hurled by demonstrators explode next to police officers during the demonstration
‘A lot of people might think I put my son in danger by being there, but I know I wouldn’t let anything happen to him, and when it started to get really dangerous, we went home.’
Thousands of people marched through Long Beach as part of the rally on Sunday to protest policing practices following the death of black man George Floyd.
While most demonstrators were peaceful, the city was also hit hard by looters.
Parks disavowed those actions during his interview with The Sun.
‘It was a peaceful protest and, yes, there were looters down the street that were doing God who knows what.
‘There was a lot of looting going on but not everyone was there to cause a ruckus, you have stupid people doing that but we were there to stand up for the people.’
Park conceded there was widespread looting in Long Beach on Sunday, but said it was separate from the peaceful protests
Looters run from a jewelry store in Long Beach on Sunday
George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died on Memorial Day as he was arrested by four police officers in Minneapolis. His death has set off nationwide protests