By Brad Brooks
March 20 (Reuters) – Philadelphia will pay $9.25 million to settle a class action lawsuit brought by racial justice protesters who accused police of abusing them during a 2020 protest over the killing of George Floyd, the city reported Monday.
The Philadelphia city government said in a written statement that the payment will be split among 343 plaintiffs who claimed physical and emotional injuries following the police response to protests sparked by the killing of Floyd, an unarmed black man. , by the Minneapolis police.
The city will also provide a grant of at least $500,000 to the Bread & Roses Community Fund for free mental health counseling for residents of West Philadelphia, a predominantly black neighborhood, who have been victims of police brutality, plaintiffs’ attorneys .
Videos of the protest showed Philadelphia police using tear gas and pepper spray in front of a crowd of protesters who had gathered on a major highway on June 1, 2020. Plaintiffs also accused police of firing bullets rubber in front of the crew.
Las protestas de 2020 en Filadelfia fueron unas de las muchas que se produjeron después de que saliera a la luz un vídeo en el que veía a un agente de police de Minneapolis inmovilizando a Floyd contra el suelo poniendo la rodilla en su cuello pendante unos nueve minutes.
The Legal Defense Fund, one of the organizations representing the plaintiffs, called the settlement one of the largest in the city’s history, noting that police had agreed to meet with West Philly residents every six months to provide data about your use of force and answer questions. from the community.
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said the pain and trauma caused by “a legacy of systemic racism and police brutality against black and brown Philadelphians is immeasurable,” but he hopes the settlement will help heal the wounds.
Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said her department is “a learning organization” and will continue to work to better protect “the First Amendment rights of protesters.” (Reporting by Brad Brooks in Lubbock, Texas; Editing in Spanish by Aida Peláez-Fernández)