George Floyd's daughter Gianna posts heart-rending photo and video, says 'happy Father's Day in heaven, daddy'
George Floyd’s six-year-old daughter Gianna has shared a heartwarming message for her dad on the occasion of Father’s day, which was on Sunday, June 21. Sharing a throwback picture of her and her deceased father, the little one wrote: “Happy Father's Day in Heaven Daddy... look I took a picture of us with Rainbow on my first photo lesson... I hope you love it 💕#justiceforgeorgefloyd." It was Gianna’s first Father’s Day without the 46-year-old who died in police custody on May 25.
You can see the photo here.
On her Instagram page, Gianna also shared a clip from a recent interview where she talked about her father, remembering some of her loving memories with him. “When I was a little baby, dad would do everything for me. Like change my diaper and feed me all of the time and put me to bed. When it was time for my birthday to happen when I was a baby and it was time for my birthday, he would take me to Chuck E. Cheese and he would let me play all the games,” she said.
You can watch the video here.
“He was strong and good to me. And he was fun. And he’s always going to be fun,” Gianna added.
According to a June 1 report of the Hennepin County Medical Examiner, Floyd — an African-American man — died from "cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression”. The report also stated his death as a homicide. The death of the father-of-five was captured on video that showed ex-officer Derek Chauvin pressing his neck on Floyd’s neck for over eight minutes, despite him saying, “I can't breathe."
After the tragic incident, Chauvin and three other officers were fired from the job. While Chauvin was charged with second-degree murder, the other three cops — Thomas Lane, Tou Thao, and J Alexander Kueng — were charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter.
The death of Floyd prompted nationwide protests over racial injustice and police brutality across the US with people coming out on the streets despite the coronavirus pandemic. Roxie Washington, the mother of Gianna, also spoke out after Floyd’s death at a press conference. "I don't have a lot to say, because I can't get my words together right now. But I want everybody to know that this is what those officers took. At the end of the day, they get to go home and be with their families,” she said.
Washington added: “Gianna does not have a father. He will never see her grow up, graduate; he will never walk her down the aisle. If there's a problem she's having and she needs her dad, she does not have that anymore. I'm here for my baby, and I'm here for George because I want justice for him. I want justice for him 'cause he was good. No matter what anybody thinks, he was good."
Supporting the mother, Atlanta-based attorney Justin Miller said that Washington was speaking out to "show the world that George Floyd is not just a name, not just a meme and not just something to be chanted."