U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and George Floyd's brother will attend the funeral in Memphis on Wednesday for Tyre Nichols, the young African-American whose fatal beating by black police officers shocked the country.
The 29-year-old man was arrested on January 7 by agents from a special unit in Memphis, in the southern United States, for a simple traffic violation according to the police.
But beaten so badly that he was unrecognizable according to his family, he died three days later in hospital.
The case had made the authorities fear a social conflagration comparable to that which had followed the death, under the knee of a white police officer in 2020, of George Floyd.
Reform
Philonise Floyd, one of the latter's brothers, will also be present at the funeral, according to the law firm representing the family of Tire Nichols.
"On February 1, the Vice President will travel to Memphis, Tennessee, to attend the funeral of Tyre Nichols
," the US executive said in a statement.
Ben Crump, the attorney for the family of Tire Nichols - who also represented the Floyd family - said in a statement that the vice president was making the trip at the invitation of the young man's parents.
In a phone call he described as
"emotional"
,
“the vice-president was able to console Ms. Wells (the mother of Tyre Nichols, editor’s note) and even help her smile.
Tyre's parents have invited Vice President Harris to the funeral tomorrow, and were pleased that she accepted their invitation
,” Ben Crump said.
For his part, President Joe Biden plans to receive members of the parliamentary group bringing together African-American elected officials Thursday at the White House to
“discuss legislation on police reform and other common priorities”,
declared Olivia Dalton, an executive spokesperson.
"President Biden is determined to do everything in his power (...) to ensure that our criminal justice system lives up to expectations of impartial justice (...) and dignity for all"
, she added.
The harrowing footage of Tyre Nichols being arrested and beaten by officers was shown last week, without cuts, by the country's biggest channels.
The five police officers involved were fired and charged with murder.
The SCORPION unit to which they belonged, and which aimed to reduce the number of illegal activities in sensitive neighborhoods by deploying more police there, was dismantled.
Three firefighters were dismissed in connection with the facts and two other police officers suspended.
On Wednesday in Memphis, the Reverend Al Sharpton, a figure in the fight for civil rights, will deliver the funeral oration for Tire Nichols at the Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church.
The service is due to start at 10:30 a.m. local (4:30 p.m. GMT).
In addition to George Floyd's brother, Breonna Taylor's mother, Tamika Palmer, will also attend, according to the law firm.
Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old African-American,
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