‘How long before we strike back?’: Ice Cube reacts to death of unarmed black man following arrest in Minneapolis

George Floyd died after a police officer knelt on his neck

The death of an unarmed black man after a police officer knelt on his neck has sparked outrage, prompting the rapper Ice Cube to tweet: “How long will we go for Blue on Black Crime before we strike back???”

A video surfaced on Monday (25 May) of George Floyd being arrested in Minneapolis by a white police officer.

It shows the police officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck while ignoring his protests that he could not breathe. Floyd later died.

Four Minneapolis police officers have been fired over the incident, which occurred after they were called to reports of a forgery in progress with the suspect appearing under the influence.

After Ice Cube’s tweet was criticised by some of his followers, he replied: “Anybody coming at me for what I said ain’t ready to do s***…”

A protest was planned for Tuesday evening outside the Cup Foods corner store where the incident took place.

“The truth is that MPD officers caused the medical distress and death of the victim through their inhumane actions,” organisers said in a statement on the group’s Facebook page, I Can’t Breathe: Protest Against Police Violence. “We are gathering at the site of Mr Floyd’s death, to demand justice for the victim and his family.”

Benjamin Crump, the attorney representing Floyd’s family, said in a statement they would seek justice and demand answers.

“This abusive, excessive and inhumane use of force cost the life of a man who was being detained by the police for questioning about a non-violent charge,” he said. “How many ‘white black’ deaths will it take until the racial profiling and undervaluing of black lives by police finally ends?”