• By Abhirupa Kundu
  • Wed, 07 Feb 2024 10:52 AM (IST)
  • Source:JND
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Colorado natives, five black girls including four minors, in an unjust move, were held at gunpoint by the police. Brittney Gilliam and her six-year-old daughter along with nieces aged 12, 14, and 17 were driving on a Sunday morning on their way to get their nails done, but before the girls could enter the salon, they were stopped by the police who ordered the girls to lie face down on the hot parking lot. The cops handcuffed two of them aged 12 and 17 while they gasped for air and cried as the White officers swayed above them.

The video went viral in August 2020 drawing flak on United States police for the consistent abuse of Black Americans. This is not a standalone incident where Black people have been harassed just for their race. Incidents of rampant racism have continued to plague America even after multiple protests globally.

In the case of the Colorado girls, the city of Aurora has reached a USD 1.9 million settlement with the family. According to a BBC report, the police claimed that they had thought Gilliam was driving a stolen car and had been trained to perform a "high-risk stop".

The persistent racial inequality has also triggered movements like "Black Lives Matter", which started following the killings of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Rekia Boyd, among others.

"Would your kids be okay after that? Having a gun pulled on them and lay on the ground. Especially a six-year-old," Gilliam had told CBS soon after the incident.

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The settlement with the Black family was finalised on Monday with the attorney stating that this compensation will help the girls avoid reliving the trauma. No officers were charged or suspended in connection to the incident. 


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