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“I can’t breathe.”
These words echo from body cam and onlooker videos, witness reports and courtroom testimony. As you look through the images and text below, please take away with you the memory of the shocking number of Black and Brown men whose breath was stolen from them forever by police.
We begin with this moving song and video by Melvin Myles (featuring C J Simmons Sr.).












Find more articles in the series here.
For an interactive exploration of “I can’t breathe” cases, please visit this New York Times article chronicling the deaths of 70 people in the custody of law enforcement.
Graphics and text by Danielle Eaglewarrior and Rena Korb