Killer Mike condemned the death of Rayshard Brooks, who was fatally shot in a widely seen confrontation with Atlanta police Friday, on social media Saturday.
“#RayshardBrooks should be alive this morning,” the Run the Jewels rapper wrote. “He should be waking up (hungover or drunk in the tank depending on whether he was apprehended) and not dead.”
Brooks reportedly was asleep inside his car in the drive-in lane of a Wendy’s when police officers were called to the scene, and was initially cooperative with the responding officers. However, according to the New York Times, Officer Garrett Rolfe fired a stun gun at Brooks while attempting to take him into custody. Brooks got a hold of the stun gun, broke free and attempted to escape. A chase ensued where Brooks pointed the stun gun at Rolfe, who fired three gunshots at Brooks.
Various angles of video footage from the Brooks confrontation was soon posted to social media. Following Brooks’ death, the Atlanta police chief stepped down and the two officers involved in the incident were fired. On Saturday night, the Wendy’s where the Brooks shooting took place was burned down by protesters.
“If I’m the Wendy’s worker who called the police, I feel like shit this morning because a call for a man sleeping in a car should not have ended with his killing,” Killer Mike said. “If I’m the people with the child in the car, I feel helpless and hurt. If I’m that child, I’m scared shitless of anyone with a uniform and a gun. If I’m the angry white or black guy who was filming and saying, ‘I watched y’all for twenty minutes,’ I’m wondering what else I could have done?”
Killer Mike continued, “I am mad as hell and I am saddened beyond consolation. At a minimum, we need a law that prevents shooting a person while they’re fleeing. If there is no weapon, fleeing from an officer should be a foot chase and radio race. If a person gets away, they get away. As I have said before, I will continue to look to and support grassroots organizations who are doing the work, day in and day out.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBYxv8aHlkP
In late May, when the George Floyd protests in Atlanta turned into looting, Killer Mike delivered an emotional speech during the mayor’s conference pleading with protesters to not “burn your own house down for anger with an enemy.”
Killer Mike also recently took part in our RS Interview: Special Edition, where he spoke about Run the Jewels 4’s prescient lyrics and the things that give him hope.
