Mourning Daunte Wright: Photos of the Vigils and Protests Honoring the 20-Year-Old Killed By Police
The parallel is chilling: While one police officer is on trial for killing a Black man in Minneapolis, another police officer, just miles away, killed another Black man.
The grieving city was already grappling with the high-profile trial of former officer Derek Chauvin, who is charged with murder for killing George Floyd last summer. On Sunday, a new dimension of pain ripped open in Minneapolis when Kim Potter fatally shot 20-year-old Daunte Wright during a traffic stop. Potter, who claims she accidentally killed Wright after mistaking her gun for a taser, has resigned from the force, and was charged with second-degree manslaughter on Wednesday, according to NBC News. Protesters have taken to the streets every night this week, asking how there could possibly be a way to reform a system that engages in the exact same patterns over and over again.
Photographer Bridget Bennett joined the marchers, witnessing tense standoffs with officers outside the local police department and groups of teenagers mourning together at vigils. She watched the press conference where Wright’s family and his girlfriend, the mother of his child, told the crowd that he was “loved.”
Here is some of what Bridget saw.
1/19Protesters gather outside Brooklyn Center Police Department in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on April 13, 2021. Daunte Wright was shot and killed by former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter.
2/19Demonstrators face off with law enforcement outside Brooklyn Center Police Department in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
3/19Protesters gather outside Brooklyn Center Police Department in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
4/19People embrace at a memorial site for Daunte Wright in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
5/19Daunte Wright's mother, Katie Wright, speaks on the street that her son died during a vigil on Monday, April 12, 2021 in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. 20-year-old Daunte was shot and killed by a 26-year veteran Brooklyn Center police officer.
6/19Officers are seen outside Brooklyn Center Police Department in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
7/19Daunte Wright's mother looks to George Floyd's girlfriend, Courteney Ross, prior to a press conference at the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
8/19Naisha Wright (right) aunt of Daunte Wright, is embraced at a press conference at the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
9/19Minnesota Teen Activists founder Liyah M., 15, and co-founder Gabby H., 16, visit businesses, surveying damage from looting in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on April 13, 2021. The activists are raising money to help community businesses that have been impacted.
10/19Elijah, 2, whose mother preferred to just give first name, holds up a sign that reads “Justice for Daunte Wright” outside Brooklyn Center Police Department in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
11/19Protesters demand justice for Daunte Wright.
12/19Donations from the community fill a gym at Brooklyn Center High School in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
13/19Someone holds a candle while mourning Daunte Wright.
14/19Two people hold hands during a vigil for 20-year-old Daunte Wright on Monday, April 12, 2021 in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.
15/19Daunte Wright's mother, Katie Wright, speaks in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.
16/19Flowers are left as community members pay respects to 20-year-old Daunte Wright on the street he died on during a vigil on Monday, April 12, 2021 in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.
BRIDGET BENNETT17/19Chyna Whitaker, Daunte Wright's girlfriend, carries the pair's child as family and friends arrive for a press conference at the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
BRIDGET BENNETT18/19Attendees embrace at a press conference held by the families of George Floyd and Daunte Wright at the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota on April 13, 2021.
BRIDGET BENNETT19/19Chyna Whitaker, Daunte Wright's girlfriend, mourns the 20-year-old's killing.
