What should’ve been a routine traffic stop turned into a viral incident after a Black driver recorded himself criticizing a police officer for allegedly pulling a gun out on him.
The video was originally posted on Facebook and Instagram last Wednesday by a man named Randell Minott, who claims the recordings are of him. Several days after, Minott posted a longer version of the video, showing more of his rant at a white cop who allegedly pulled out his gun for no reason and pointed it at him.
“A turn signal not made is a big enough of a crime for you to feel like you need to take out your service pistol, right?” the Black driver says to the cop. “Fucking prick shit. That’s prick shit, bro.”
https://www.facebook.com/kingshinesound/videos/1441985402517159/
The driver pointed out that if the cop came over and followed standard procedures, there wouldn’t have been a problem. But because the cop allegedly pulled out his gun without reason, the driver was furious.
“I’d’ve had three fucking kids, three kids with no dad,” he said. “Dad a criminal? Nope. Dad a thug? Nope. Dad shot dead by a cop made a mistake cause you wanna come with your gun drawn.”
The driver’s video went viral on Twitter after it was posted by user SIX_FOOT_5, sparking over 300K retweets. Black Twitter fell in love with the driver, pointing out that the police officer’s alleged actions were completely inappropriate and potentially life-threatening.
“He spoke 4 all who didn’t make it home from deathly encounters w cops,” one user said, listing the names of Black men and women who were killed by police officers across the U.S.
Roasteddddddddd himmmmm it's sad you gotta go like that https://t.co/SA4h7boeTd
— Ayra2U (@x__Infinity18) September 10, 2017
About time this crap is stopped there has been too many lives lost with these power hungry cops who pulls a gun out to make a routine stop?
— thecrimsonidol (@ericdraven1234) September 10, 2017
https://twitter.com/FMunleashed/status/906788942695026688
But some Twitter users were skeptical of the video, with several white posters outright defending the cop for pulling his gun—a response other users were quick to criticize.
so u believe he walks to a car full of high school white girls with his gun drawn?
— Kevin Kapowski (@kayhaven) September 10, 2017
You realize at night you don't know if the driver is white, black, or Hispanic, right? I know lots of cops who do this at night all the time
— Will Moravits (@wmoravits23) September 10, 2017
I'm pretty sure it's against regulations to shoot an unarmed man, too. What's your point?
— 「 ANCIENT ⚙ GEARHEAD 」 (@ShadeYuki) September 10, 2017
https://twitter.com/arandall423/status/906762768610676736
In 2017, much like every year before it, there has been no shortage of Black people being harassed by cops. There was the Black man in Florida who claimed he was discriminated against by police officers for jaywalking. And the Black handyman who was held in jail for 90 days after police confused drywall powder with cocaine. Not to mention all the unarmed Black teenagers and mentally ill people like pregnant Charleena Lyles who were killed by cops, and the fact that over a quarter of the 492 people who were shot by police in the first half of this year were Black men.