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THOUSANDS took to the streets of Paris on Saturday as they marked the fourth anniversary of the death of Adama Traore, a black man who was killed in police custody.
His death in July 2016 sparked protests against police brutality and racial injustice in France, where at least 101 police-related deaths are currently under investigation.
His sister Assa Traore said: “My brother withstood the weight of those three gendarmes for nine minutes. Today we are insisting, we are asking that the facts be recategorised as voluntary homicide.
“They willingly killed Adama. They decided that Adama Traore would die, that he would die on his 24th birthday. No man, no person should die in this way, dying at 24 years old.
“Today we denounce police impunity in the death of Adama Traore; police impunity in France; we denounce racial violence; we denounce social violence.”
The protests were joined by undocumented migrants and climate activists who rallied under the cry: “We want to breathe.”
Paris police came under the spotlight earlier this year after the death of black delivery driver Cedric Chouviat. He was heard repeatedly shouting “I’m suffocating” and told officers he could not breathe at least seven times as they stopped and detained him in January.
