George Floyd, the black man whose brutal death at the hands of police has sparked a worldwide reckoning over racial injustice, will be laid to rest in his hometown of Houston today in a private funeral service.
The service will be held for Floyd at the Fountain of Praise Church at 11am local time, where family and friends will pay their final respects.
Floyd’s body will then be carried home in a horse-drawn carriage and laid to rest next to his mother at the Houston Memorial Gardens in Pearland.
On May 25, as a white Minneapolis officer pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck for an agonizing eight minutes and 46 seconds, the dying man cried out for his mother before his last breath.
About 500 guests invited by the Floyd family, including political leaders and celebrities, are slated to attend the ceremony, the culmination of a long farewell to the man whose death has rocked America and fueled calls for police reform.
The service began with gospel music and Reverend Al Sharpton walking down the aisle with Floyd’s family’s members, all dressed in white to celebrate Floyd’s life.
George Floyd, the black man whose brutal death at the hands of police has sparked a worldwide reckoning over racial injustice, will be laid to rest in his hometown of Houston today. Floyd’s casket pictured placed at the Fountain of Praise church, Tuesday, June 9, 2020, in Houston
Pallbearers bring the coffin into The Fountain of Praise church in Houston for the funeral for George Floyd on Tuesday for a service where family and loved ones will pay their final respects
About 500 guests invited by the Floyd family, including political leaders and celebrities, are slated to attend the ceremony, the culmination of a long farewell to the man whose death has rocked America and fueled calls for police reform
Floyd’s family arrived to the funeral dressed in white in celebration of his life along with Reverend Al Sharpton on Tuesday
The service opened with gospel music as mourners trickled into the chapel to celebrate Floyd’s life on Tuesday
The first mourners trickled into the chapel and paid their respects at Floyd’s casket Tuesday morning
Harris County District Attorney Kimm Ogg closed her eyes and paused for a moment at the casket of George Floyd on Tuesday
Feorge Floyd, 46 died on May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into the back of his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds in a horrific video that sparked protests across the country
Organizers have said that attendees include Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, Rev. Al Sharpton, Attorney Benjamin Crump, Slim Thug, Leela James, Paul Wall, Floyd Mayweather, Congressman Al Green and Bishop James Dixon, according to KHOU11.
Rev. Sharpton will deliver the eulogy and Dr. Remus E. Wright and Pastor Mia K. Wright of the Fountain of Praise will deliver the life celebration salutation. Attorney Ben Crump is also slated to share remarks at the service.
City officials will close the streets within a mile of the cemetery, but supporters can still watch the procession.
On Tuesday morning Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced a shared moment of silence for his constituents in honor of Floyd saying: ‘In honor of the funeral for George Floyd, we ask all Minnesotans to spend 8 minutes and 46 seconds in silence at 11am this morning.’
As of Tuesday morning, fences were placed along Cullen Boulevard to allow people to pay their respect to Floyd. While city officials say they do not know how many people will arrive, they are prepared for a massive crowd.
On Monday more than 6,300 people attended his public viewing ceremony Monday at Fountain of Praise church including political leaders Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson and others.
The funeral services comes after five days of public memorials in Minneapolis, North Carolina and Houston.
On Monday, under a blazing Texas sun, mourners wearing T-shirts with Floyd’s picture or the words ‘I Can’t Breathe’ – one of the other things he cried out repeatedly while pinned down by the police officer – waited for hours to pay their respects.
Floyd’s body, dressed in a brown suit, lay in an open gold-colored casket. Shortly after the memorial ended, Floyd’s casket was placed in a hearse and escorted by police back to a funeral home.
As the hearse drove away, 39-year-old Daniel Osarobo, a Houston resident who immigrated from Nigeria, could be heard saying, ‘Rest in power. Rest In Peace.’
‘I’ve been stopped by police. I understand the situation. I can only imagine,’ Osarobo, who works as an engineer in the oil and gas industry said. ‘What if it was me? What if it was my brother? What if it was my sister? What if it was my son?’
Paying respects: Police officers with the Texas Southern University police saluted the casket of George Floyd as he was brought into the Fountain of Praise Church on Tuesday
Never forgotten: Texas Southern University police officers saluted Floyd’s casket as it was brought in the for the funeral
A service will take place at 11am local time followed by a burial in Pearland. Thousands turned out for a public viewing on Monday
Members of the Texas Southern University Police Department pause at the casket bearing the remains of George Floyd in the chapel on Tuesday playing their hands to their hearts
Houston Texans NFL player J. J. Watt had a moment of silence before Floyd’s casket on Tuesday at the emotional service
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez takes a knee before Floyd’s casket and bows his head to pay his respects at the service
Those were questions many black Americans have asked not just in recent weeks, but for decades.
Floyd’s death sparked international protests and drew new attention to the treatment of African Americans in the U.S. by police and the criminal justice system.
In the past two weeks, sweeping and previously unthinkable things have taken place: Confederate statues have been toppled, police departments around America have rethought the way they patrol minority neighborhoods, legislatures have debated use-of-force policies, and white, black and brown people have had uncomfortable, sometimes heated, discussions about race in a nation that is supposed to ensure equal opportunity for all.
Calls for ‘defunding the police’ have cropped up in many communities, and people around the world have taken to the streets in solidarity, saying that reforms and dialogue must not stop with Floyd’s funeral.
Floyd’s casket seen being placed in the chapel as bystander’s watch on at Tuesday’s funeral service
His gold casket pictured being set up for the funeral service at the Fountain of Praise Church service. On Monday more than 6,300 people attended his public viewing ceremony Monday at Fountain of Praise church including political leaders Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson and others
Floyd’s gold casket pictured being set up ahead of the funeral on Tuesday in Houston, Texas
Floyd’s casket pictured being delicately polished ahead of the funeral, the culmination of a long farewell to the 46-year-old whose death has changed America
The hearse carrying the coffin pictured when it first arrived to the church for Floyd’a funeral service on Tuesday
Hundreds of people gathered on the path outside the chapel to watch the funeral from afar. A member of the New Black Panthers yells as he confronts a mourner during Tuesday’s funeral
His death has also reshaped the presidential race. To be re-elected, President Donald Trump must rebound from one of the lowest points of his presidency, with recent polls showing that 8 in 10 Americans believe the country is headed in the wrong direction and even spiraling out of control. The president got a boost late last week with a better-than-expected jobs report, but he’s struggling to show consistent leadership on multiple fronts, including the nationwide protests against police brutality.
Meanwhile, former Vice President Joe Biden met with Floyd’s family Monday, according to a photo posted on Twitter by the Rev. Al Sharpton. Biden will provide a video message for Floyd’s funeral service.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott also met privately with Floyd’s family on Monday, according to the Texas Tribune.
On Monday Abbott raised the idea of starting a George Floyd Act saying, ‘I’m here to tell you today that I am committed to working with the family of George Floyd, to ensure we never have anything like this ever occur in the state of Texas.’
The memorials have drawn the families of black victims in other high-profile killings whose names have become seared into America’s conversations on race – among them Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Ahmaud Arbery and Trayvon Martin.
‘It just hurts,’ Philonise Floyd, George Floyd’s brother, said sobbing as he ticked off some of their names outside The Fountain of Praise church. ‘We will get justice. We will get it. We will not let this door close.’