I Can't Breathe

Submission 35,196

Part of a series on Eric Garner's Death. [View Related Entries]

About

"I Can't Breathe" is a quote uttered by Eric Garner, a 43-year-old Staten Island black man who died after being placed in a choke-hold by the officers of the New York Police Department in July 2014. In the weeks following his death, the quote quickly became the unofficial slogan chanted by protesters against police brutality and racial profiling in the United States.

Origin

On July 17th, 2014, Eric Garner^[1], a New York City father of six children and a 400-pound asthmatic man, was put into a choke-hold after apparently breaking up a fight outside a local storefront in Staten Island. Five New York Police Department officers surrounded the father and then forced him onto the ground, while the man continually shouted, "I can't breathe" (clip below).^[2]

Spread

The phrase "I Can't Breathe" quickly became a famous slogan for the anti-police brutality and Black Lives Matter movements, particularly after the police officer who choked Garner was not indicted. On December 5th, news organizations and "The Daily Show" aired segments Garner's death, featuring the phrase as part of the protest (shown below, left and right).

On December 3rd, 2014, Twitter ^[3] user @LisaBloom tweeted, "Eric Garner said 'I can’t breathe' & police choked him anyway ON VIDEO. Every decent person should be sickened by no indictment today." The tweet received more than 4,600 retweets and 2,200 likes in less than six years (shown below).

As the phrase grew in usage, prominent public figures began using the words to express outrage toward Garner's death and the failure to indict. On December 9th, 2014, members of the Los Angeles Lakers wore shirts that read "I Can't Breathe" while warming up for a game (shown below, left).^[4]

On December 10th, the Lakers Nation YouTube channel aired an interview about the shirts with late-professional basketball player Kobe Bryant about the shirts (shown below, right).

As the phrase became associated with the protests, it also became a controversial expression. In late December 2014, a high school basketball team was disinvited from a tournament "because of concerns players would wear T-shirts with the words “I Can’t Breathe” printed on them while warming up," according to The Guardian.^[5]

On December 28th, 2017, Twitter^[6] user @Delo_Taylor tweeted, "The NYPD murdered Erica Garner's father, #EricGarner, then held rallies where they publicly mocked his dying words 'I can't breathe' all the while stalking & harassing his family, supporters & activists. The terrorist killer cop, Daniel Pantaleo is still employed." The tweet received more than 7,200 likes and 6,300 retweets in less than three years (shown below).

In 2020, the death of George Floyd, a black man who also died following a choking while in police custody and used the phrase "I can't breathe" in his last words, brought renewed usage to the phrase. Twitter^[6] user @BellezaDeAltura wrote about the children's television network Nickelodeon's statement, which prominently featured the quote (clip below, left). They wrote, "On nickelodeon they have a 'I can’t Breathe' commercial that shows how long is 9 mins. During this 9 mins you hear nothing just breathing." The tweet received more than 900,000 likes and 193,000 retweets in less than one month (shown below, right).

Several media outlets reported on the usage of the phrase, including HuffPost,^[7] The New York Times,^[8] TIME,^[9] the Atlantic,^[10] NBC,^[11] Wired^[12] and more.