Darnella Frazier, the teen whose viral video captured the painful final moments of George Floyd’s life, says she’s been traumatized by events of the day and the subsequent backlash from people questioning why she recorded the video.
Floyd, 46, died Monday, his last moments caught on video by Frazier. While being arrested, Floyd was held down by a Minneapolis police officer’s knee.
The video shows Floyd pleading that he is in pain and can’t breathe. Then, his eyes shut and the pleas stop. He was pronounced dead shortly after.
Social media trolls and commentators have questioned why Frazier did not step in to rescue Floyd, with some claiming she had done it all for attention.
“I’m doing it for clout? For attention? What? To get paid?” Frazier wrote in a Facebook post.
“Now y’all just sound dumb and ignorant!! I don’t expect anyone who wasn’t placed in my position to understand why and how I feel the way that I do!! Mind you, I am a minor! [I’m] 17 years old, of course, I’m not about to fight off a cop I’m SCARED.”
The 17-year-old asked people who are upset by the video to understand how difficult it was to record the traumatizing event.
“If it wasn’t for me 4 cops would’ve still had their jobs, causing other problems,” she continued. “My video went world wide for everyone to see and know!! His family was reached out to [because of the video]!
“The police most definitely would’ve swept it under the rug with a cover up story. Instead of bashing me, THANK ME! Because that could’ve been one of your loved ones and you would want to see the truth as well.”
Frazier’s mother told TMZ that her daughter, who suffers from anxiety, was out making a store run when she witnessed and recorded the horrific events on Monday.