Darnella Frazier, the Minneapolis teenager who recorded the viral video of George Floyd’s murder, said Tuesday that she still carries the burden of what she witnessed.
“I still hold the weight and trauma of what I witnessed a year ago,” Frazier, 18, wrote on Facebook. “A part of my childhood was taken from me.”
Frazier, who gave emotional testimony during the murder trial of ex-cop Derek Chauvin, reflected on the one-year anniversary of Floyd’s killing.
“A year ago, today I witnessed a murder. The victim’s name was George Floyd,” she wrote.
“I didn’t know this man from a can of paint, but I knew his life mattered,” Frazier said. “I knew that he was in pain. I knew that he was another black man in danger with no power.”
Frazier, then 17, had been having a “normal day” on May 25, 2020 — and had no idea how much her life would be altered, she wrote.
She and her 9-year-old cousin walked to the corner store when they saw Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck. Her cellphone video of the deadly encounter would spark global protests for racial justice and against police brutality.
“It changed me,” Frazier wrote. “It changed how I viewed life. It made me realize how dangerous it is to be black in America.”
“We shouldn’t have to walk on eggshells around police officers,” she continued, “the same people that are supposed to protect and serve.”
For weeks after Floyd was killed, Frazier said she used to shake so badly at night that her mom would have to rock her to sleep. She would wake up to reporters outside her door and had panic and anxiety attacks every time she saw a police car.
“It’s a little easier now, but I’m not who I used to be,” she wrote.
Last month, after Chauvin was convicted, Frazier received an outpouring of support online for her role in documenting the crime and helping bring justice to Floyd’s family.
But while she noted that many people have called her a hero, Frazier wrote on Tuesday that she doesn’t feel like one.
“Behind this smile, behind these awards, behind the publicity, I’m a girl trying to heal from something I am reminded of every day,” she said.
“Everyone talks about the girl who recorded George Floyd‘s death, but to actually be her is a different story.”
Frazier added: “My video didn’t save George Floyd, but it put his murderer away and off the streets.”
She closed her powerful post by addressing Floyd directly, writing, “I can’t express enough how I wish things could have went different, but I want you to know you will always be in my heart.”
“I’ll always remember this day because of you. May your soul rest in peace. May you rest in the most beautiful roses.”