THE UNEDITED EULOGY OF REV. AL SHARPTON FOR GEORGE FLOYD..!

For those of you in the New Age Nerd community who did not (or have yet) had the privilege to hear the entire - unedited speech/eulogy of Reverend Al Sharpton on behalf of the memory of Mr. George Floyd, please read and re-member these words as they were shared with the entire WORLD! May they continue to be the calling card for the Collective Consciousness of a brand new day! A space in which LOVE and EQUALITY become the base line calling cards for the entire Universe! In which we use our power of FAITH and KNOWINGNESS to build a Spiritual Tome under which all future generations are proud to call their HOME! 



"Thank You!"

"I want us, to not sit here, and act like we had a funeral on the schedule. George Floyd, should not be amongst the deceased. He did not die of common health conditions. He died of a common American criminal justice malfunction. He died because there has not been the corrective behavior, that if you commit a crime, it does not matter whether you wear blue jeans or a blue uniform, you must pay for the crime that you did commit. So it is not a normal funeral. It is not a normal circumstance. But it is too common. And we need to deal with it. Let me ask you that, in the tradition of eulogies, need a scripture reference, go to
Ecclesiastes 3:11 He has made everything appropriate in its time.:

To everything there is a time, and a purpose, and a season under the Heavens. I'm going to leave it there.

I saw somebody standing in front of a church the other day which had been boarded up as a result of violence. (referring to President Donald Trump's impromptu photo-op in which he held up a Bible in front of the ........  church after ordering police troops to 'rid Lafayette Square in downtown D.C. of peaceful protesters)  He held the bible in his hands. I've been preaching since I was a little boy, I've never seen anyone hold a bible like that, but I will leave that one alone. But since he held the bible, if he is watching us today, I would like for him to open that bible.  (APPLAUSE!) And I'd like him to read Eclesistaes Three:

'To every season there is a time and a purpose, and I think that it is our job to let the world know when we see what is going on in the streets of this country, and in Europe around the World, that we need to know what time it is! First of all, we cannot use bibles as a prop. And for those that have agendas that are not about justice, this family will not let you use George as a prop! (APPLAUSE!) 

If you want to get your stuff off, don't use him. Let us stand for what is right. Because when I got the call from...... attorney Crump, and usually when he calls me, it's not to find out how I'm doing! It's usually because something happened that he wants national network and I to get involved! And he explained to me what was happening with this case. And I had already heard about it in the media. 
And....   immediately I said well let me know what you need me to do. And he said, "Whatever you need to do!"

One of the things Martin, that I've always had to deal with is the critics saying, "All Al Sharpton wants is publicity!" 'Well that's exactly what I want. Cause nobody calls me to keep a secret.' (YES....AMEN!)  People call me to blow up issues that nobody else will deal with! I'm the blow up man and I don't apologize for that! Cause you get away.... too much with hiding things. (Your family talked about you all putting clothes on the oven) to have.... your clothes dried. Well, I didn't grow up in the 3rd world, but I grew up in the 3rd ward, and I grew up in Brownsville and we had roaches. Now I know that Kevin Hart and some of the rich Hollywood folks here don't know what roaches are! (LAUGHTER!) We had roaches! (looking toward famous rapper Ludicrous!) One thing I found out about roaches is that if you keep the light off, if you are in the dark, a roach will pull up to your dinner table and have a five coarse meal! (YES! .....laughter!) 

So I learned, one of the ways to deal with roaches is if you cut the light on, I could run them roaches and track them down! And I have spent all my life chasing roaches all around this country...   (APPLAUSE!!......)

As soon as I talked to the family and got the details, and heard that.... among George's last words were, "I can't breathe," with a knee on his neck. I immediately thought about Eric Gardner, cause I did the eulogy at his funeral. And I called his mother, and I said, 'I know we're not going out because of the Coronavirus, but this is so much like Eric. If we could arrange some private way.... to go to Minneapolis, would you go?' And she said, 'Reverend Al, I'm already packing! Let me know!'

Tyler Perry (African American Hollywood mogul) said, "I'll give the family the plane! Whatever you'll need. 'Cause this is wrong!"

Robert Smith said, "Don't worry about the funeral costs!"

People across economic and racial lines started calling and getting in! And we flew out here, her and I last Thursday. And when I stood at that spot.... (where he died) The reason it got to me is that George Floyd's story has been the story of black folks! Because ever since four hundred and one years ago, the reason we could never be who we wanted and dreamed of being is because you kept your knee on our necks! (YES!!  APPLAUSE!! TRUTH!!)

We were smarter than the underfunded schools you put us in, but you had your knee on our necks! 
We could run corporations and not hustle in the street, but you had your knee on our neck! 

We had creative skills. We could do whatever anybody else could do. But we couldn't get your knee off our neck! What happened to Floyd happens every day in this country; in education and health services and in every area of American life! And it's time for us to stand up in George's name and say, 'Get your knee off our necks!'

"That's the problem no matter who you are. We thought maybe we had a complex... (toward famous rapper T.I.  in the audience) maybe it was just us. But even blacks who had broke through. You kept that knee on our neck. Michael Jordan won all of these championships and you kept digging for mess, cause you got to keep a knee on our neck! White housewives would run home to see a black woman on TV named Oprah Winfrey, and you'd mess with her 'cause you just can't take your knee.... off our neck! Man comes out of a single parent home, educates himself, and rises up to become the President of the United States. And you ask him for his birth certificate! Because you cannot take your knee of our neck! The reason why we are marching all over the World is because we were like George!!  We couldn't breathe! Not because there was something wrong with our lungs! But because you wouldn't take your knee off our neck! We don't want no favors! Just get up off of us! And we can be and do whatever we can be!!" (LONG STANDING OVATION!!!)

"There have been protests.... all over the world, some have... looted... and done other things. And none of us in this family condones looting or violence.  But...... the thing that I want us to be real cognizant of..  is that there is a real difference between those calling for peace and those calling for quiet!" 

"Some of you all don't want peace. You just want quiet! You just want us to shut up and suffer in silence! The overwhelming majority of the people marching..... weren't breaking windows.... they were trying to break barriers! They weren't trying to steal nothin'! They were trying to get back the justice that you stole from us! Those that broke the law, should pay for whatever law that they broke. But so should the four policeman that caused this funeral today! We don't have a problem denouncing violence, Mr. Governor. We don't have a problem Mr. Mayor, denouncing looting! But it seems like some in the criminal justice system have a problem looking at a tape and knowing there is probable cause and it takes a long time for you to go and do and see what you need to do!! (STANDING OVATION!!!)

But I am one that has been...... involved in a lot of these fights. We started around criminal justice. I have done speeches and eulogies in most of these funerals we have had in this space the last couple of decades. And.... led the marches and did what we had to do! I look at Martin Luther the 3rd, we went to jail together. Fighting these fights. Like his daddy went to jail before.  But I am more hopeful today...then ever. Why?! Well, because let me go back before, as Rev. Jesse Jackson always taught me, let me go back to my text. There is a time....and a season!

And when I looked at this time. And saw marches in which some cases young whites outnumbered the blacks marching, I know that it is a different time and a different season!
When I look and saw people in Germany marching for George Floyd, it's a different time and a different season! When they went in front of the parliament in London, England and said it's a different time and a different season, I come to tell you America....   'This is the time of dealing with accountability in the criminal justice system!"    (STANDING APPLAUSE!!)

"Stephen, years ago, I went to march. And I remember, a young white lady... looked me right in the face and said...  'Nigger, go home!.' But when I was here last Thursday, and I was headed back to the airport and I stopped.... near the police station.....and I was talking to a reporter... a young white girl...who looked no older than eleven years old, she tagged my suite jacket..and I braced myself, and she looked at me and said....... "No justice, no peace!!" (APPLAUSE........    APPLAUSE!!)

"It's a different time...... and a different season! And if my bible carrying President got in front of  that boarded up church. And if it got him to open up the bible, I want you to remember something,  I was late..... last October to an appointment because the time changed!  And I was still....my watch was on the wrong time! Now once a year the time goes forward! And if you don't move your watch, you're gonna find yourself an hour late! Not because your watch was wrong, but because you had your watch on the wrong time!" 

"Well I come to tell you that as sitting in Washington.... talking about militarism the country. Thinking you could sell wolf tickets to people who have had enough of abuse! I have come to tell you that you can get on the TV, but you are on the wrong time!  Time is out! For not holding you accountable! Time is out for you making excuses! Time is out for you trying to stall! Time is out for empty words and empty promises! Time is out for you filibustering and trying to stall the arm of justice! This is the time! We won't stop! We gonna keep going until we change the whole system of justice!"

BE SUPER HEROIC!

Jeffery Louis Martinez