Barack Obama Shares Emotional Messages from Friends about George Floyd Case

Barack Obama penned an emotional statement about the death of George Floyd as he shared personal conversations from emails he had with friends.

Former president, Barack Obama, has broken his silence on the death of George Floyd, who died during an arrest at the hands of a police officer in Minneapolis on May 25, 2020.

In a personal statement, Obama revealed that he wanted to share parts of email conversations he had with friends since Floyd's murder. They discuss the video taken during his arrest when an officer had his knee pressed against Floyd's neck.

In the first conversation Obama shared from a friend, he described them as a middle-aged African American businessman. In the email, the person admitted, "I cried when I saw that video. It broke me down."

Obama said another friend sent him a video of a 12-year-old boy named Keedron Bryant expressing his frustrations about police brutality through song, which he shared.

According to Vogue, the original video of Bryant has received over 2.5 million views on Instagram. In a part of the song, Bryant belts out the lyrics, "I just want to live."

"The circumstances of my friend and Keedron may be different, but their anguish is the same. It's shared by me and millions of others," Obama explained in his statement.

Obama reflected on other tragedies including the COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis and compared it to how long racial injustice has always been prevalent, he said:

"This shouldn't be "normal" in 2020 America. It can't be "normal." If we want our children to grow up...to its highest ideals.⁣ ⁣"

The former president urged officials in Minnesota to ensure that justice is served with a proper investigation into Floyd's death.

Obama's long-time friend and actress, Rita Wilson, expressed her appreciation for the statement and said, "God bless you always." Former "Today" show co-host Katie Couric also praised Obama for his words.

Obama's statement comes less than a day after CNN reporter,

called out several celebrities for the silence on the protests against police brutality.

In a move that made headlines, he named Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, Tyler Perry, and Michelle Obama among the people he noted hadn't spoken out about that matter. Lemon urged them to use their platforms to intervene.