Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams released the following statement after the NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau recommended that Officer Francisco Garcia face internal charges following a May 2 social distancing enforcement incident in which he was seen on video making a violent arrest.
"The recommendation of internal charges for NYPD Officer Francisco Garcia was announced just as Minneapolis Officer Derek Chauvin was arrested and charged in the killing of George Floyd. These are of course different cases, with different consequences for the victims, but they share striking similarities. They each are rooted in the same systemic injustices and permissive structure for violence in policing, and perpetuate the pervasive racism that infects our institutions. In each case, the positive developments of today are just beginnings, not endings, in the fight for justice.
"The fact that Officer Garcia may quickly be facing internal charges does represent progress, especially compared to the handling of the Pantaleo case and too many others. Still, it does not ultimately ensure consequences. And as the use of 50-a shields information about the NYPD officers, we are denied full transparency and accountability for all involved.
"There is a reason people are marching- in New York City, in Minneapolis, and across the country. These announcements will not placate us or quiet the voices of outrage and pain, will not repair the damage of the past weeks, months, and years. We raise our voices in protest, and we will continue to do so, because our voices need to be heard to spur action, to spur change, to push back against the longstanding injustices that bring us to this place again and again. We will push against the status quo and those fighting to maintain their privilege at all costs.
"These incidents highlight injustices, but the system ingrains them. Until there is a system of true transparency and accountability in policing, until there is an end to this unjust harming of black and brown bodies, the march for justice continues."
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