The family of Eric Garner has released a new track titled “I Can’t Breathe.” The song is “dedicated to the struggle everyone is going through,” says the family.
It’s been almost two years since we all saw Eric Garner get choked to death by New York City police officer Daniel Pantaleo on camera. Not much has changed as we just witnessed Alton Sterling and Philando Castile both die on camera at the hands of police officers as well.
Sensing the hurt that the world and especially the African-American community is experiencing right now, the Garner family has shared a new song titled, “I Can’t Breathe,” inspired by the last words Garner managed to utter [11 times] before dying.
The family tells Billboard Magazine, “The song is dedicated to the struggle everyone is going through.”
The track features Garner’s siblings Ellisha and Steven Flagg singing and rapping on the track. The hook has Ellisha singing “I can hear my brother crying “I can’t breathe.” Steven handles the raps offering the lyrics:
“If I lose my car, I can get another one / Lose my house, I can get another one / Lose my mind, I create another one / They took my brother and I can never get another one / I’m tired of a system that will never love me / A system that took my brother from me / No matter how much money I receive, I can hear my brother crying ‘I can’t breathe,'”
Officer Pantaleo was not indicted for killing Garner. Garner’s family was rewarded a settlement of $5.9 million for his death. The only person that was arrested and sent to jail in the tragedy was the man who recorded the incident on his cell phone.
Listen to the track below. It will be available for purchase on iTunes and available on all music platforms on July 16, one day before the two year anniversary of Garner’s death.
