Consider This from NPR - Who Was Breonna Taylor Before She Became The Face Of A Movement?

Episode Date: September 16, 2020

Breonna Taylor was shot and killed by police in March. Her killing in Louisville, Ky., was part of the fuel for the nationwide protests against police brutality and systemic racism this spring and summer. On Tuesday, an announcement came that the city of Louisville had reached a $12 million settlement in a civil lawsuit brought against it. But Taylor's mother, Tamika Palmer, says this is only the beginning when it comes to getting full justice. There are on-going state and federal investigations, but still no criminal charges against any of the officers involved. Before she became the face of a movement, Taylor was a daughter, a niece and a treasured friend. Ahead of what would have been Taylor's 27th birthday, NPR's Ari Shapiro went to Louisville to speak with her family and friends about how they remember Taylor. Find and support your local public radio station.Email us at [e-mail] thanks to Becky Sullivan, Sam Gringlas, Sarah Handel, Jason Fuller and Ari Shapiro for the reporting featured in this episode.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

For months, in cities across the country, in night after night of protests, you hear the same chant. Say her name. Breonna Taylor's killing in Louisville, Kentucky, was part of the fuel for the nationwide protests against police brutality and systemic racism this spring and summer. Police shot and killed her in March. It had been so long

getting to this day. Tuesday brought some measure of justice. Where we could assure that Breonna Taylor's life wouldn't be swept under the rug like so many other black women in America who have been killed by police. That's Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Breonna Taylor's family, at a press conference announcing a $12 million settlement in a civil lawsuit against the city of Louisville. The agreement also included some police reforms. We took significant steps today in the name of Breonna Taylor of trying to correct this broken criminal justice system. Breonna Taylor's mother, Tamika Parker, says this is only the beginning when it comes to getting full justice. There are ongoing state and federal investigations, but still no criminal charges against any of the officers involved. So the

activism continues. Her beautiful spirit and personality is working through all of us on the ground. So please continue to say her name, Breonna Taylor. Her name is still a symbol for those speaking out against police violence towards Black Americans. But it's more than that. Consider this. Before she became the face of a movement, Breonna Taylor was a daughter, a niece, and a treasured friend. From NPR, I'm Adi Cornish. It's Wednesday, September 16th.

This message comes from NPR sponsor, Unfinished Short Creek, the latest investigative true crime podcast from Witness Docs and Critical Frequency. A battle over family, home, and the limits of religious freedom. Find it in Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, or wherever it is you listen. This message comes from NPR sponsor Twilio, a customer engagement platform trusted by millions

of developers, enabling you to reinvent how you connect with your customers. Whatever your use case, Twilio has your back. It's time to build. Visit Twilio.com. On Facebook, there are these three brothers who love guns, say guns are overregulated, say the NRA is too quick to compromise. And they're gaining more followers every day. They're very in-your-face and offensive, and by God, I love them for it. Listen now to the No Compromise podcast from NPR. It's Consider This. I'm Adi Cornish. Breonna Taylor was killed in March.

In June, as racial justice protests spread throughout the country after police killed George Floyd, Taylor's case picked up more national attention. That's when my colleague Ari Shapiro went to Louisville to cover the protests, but also to talk with Taylor's friends and family about the person she was and about how strange it can feel when all across the country people are chanting the name of the loved one you've lost. Is it weird to share your best friend with millions of people you've never met? Yes. It makes me jealous a little bit. Like you don't even know her. But it's wonderful. It's a blessing all in the same. Like, thank you for, you know, acknowledging her and, you know, and loving her just off of what you think.

But I actually knew her, you know. Let's make that clear. She blessed my life. You don't know. Here's the story Ari reported back then, the day before Breonna Taylor would have turned 27. That's my little mini-me. Your little mini-me is what you call her? I said Tamika had her with that. She was all mine.

Breonna's aunt, Bianca Austin, invited us to her home, along with another aunt, Tahasha Holloway, and an uncle, Tyrone Bell. I called her Breezy. He called her Breezy. Breezy. She's cool. She's a cool cat. And we also visited two of her best friends since high school, Aaronika Hunter and Shetanis Vaughn.

We met Brianna sophomore year. Well, I met Brianna through you. Yeah. She introduced us. So it was me, then her, and we've been inseparable ever since. Three amigos. That's what we called ourselves, the three amigos, literally. And collectively, her friends and family gave us

the unvarnished picture of Brianna. Her laugh. And her voice. She's got like this baby whiny kind of voice like she's like oh my goodness so you definitely know like when we mock her like you'll know who it was if you knew her brianna taylor loved old music from the 80s and 90s, card games with family. Let's play some Phase 10 and listen to some music. Okay, what was her favorite game? Skipple and Phase

10. Skipple and Phase 10. And singing. Last two dollars. Oh, she's gonna sing that to the top of her lungs. Oh, so she liked to sing? She liked to sing. She couldn't. Her friends told us the same thing about her cooking she loved to do it but she

couldn't cook she can't cook she can fry food that's cooking she can't cook either a little bit her favorite food was chicken she fried some good chicken. Yeah, she did fry some chicken.

But that's it. Like I said, this is the unvarnished picture. A lot of Breonna Taylor's extended family moved from Michigan to Kentucky, a few at a time over the years. She came to Louisville as a teenager and fit right in. Breonna loved it here. To this day, she loved it in Louisville, Kentucky. Yes.

She absolutely loved it here. Like, everything about it. When did you first know that she wanted to go into medical work and help people? I think she's always had a caring heart. It was just in her nature to just take care of people. I got this Facebook post that she made for me last year when I had a stroke and I don't know it's just like I saved it and everything like it just really touched me but she said working in health care is so rewarding. It makes me feel so happy when I know I've made a difference in someone else's life.

I'm so appreciative of all the staff that has helped my uncle throughout this difficult time and those that will continue to make a difference in his life. Keep pushing, T-Ville. You got this, Unc. With that attitude and determination, I'm positive you will recover in no time. Love you. That says so much about her. Right,'s just... That says so much about her. Right, it do.

It say a lot about her. Like, and that's her. Like, that's her all the way. Last year, her friend Aaronika Hunter had brain surgery. She and Brianna had drifted apart at that point, and Brianna showed up at the hospital to reminisce with her about old times. And, um, gosh, this is hard. And I'm like, well, why did we, why did we fall out?

I don't understand. She was like, it doesn't matter, Nick. We together again, you know. Don't worry about that. I love you. Just know that we here. You here. Yep.

But she's not here. She's not here at all. And it's not right. I feel like we was robbed. Neighbors near PRP say they woke up to chaos, sounds of breaking glass, gunshots and sirens. Today, we know the outlines of how Breonna Taylor died. Police doing a narcotics investigation burst into her apartment in the middle of the night with a no-knock warrant. Her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, thought someone was breaking in and shot an officer in the leg.

Police shot up the apartment, killing Breonna. They arrested her boyfriend. Her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, thought someone was breaking in and shot an officer in the leg. Police shot up the apartment, killing Breonna. They arrested her boyfriend. There was no body cam footage. Kenneth has since been released, and the charges against him dropped. When all that first happened in mid-March, the initial news reports told only one side of the story, referring to Breonna Taylor and Kenneth Walker only as suspects. This was from the local NBC affiliate. A video of a deadly exchange of gunfire that happened between officers and suspects early this morning.

One suspect is dead. An officer is recovering. And when her family saw those stories. I was angry. I was so angry. Oh, my gosh. It still pisses me off. Just suspect. Like, seriously? Unbelievable. When I read that article, I probably said more cuss words in that little time that I said throughout my whole life. Like, angry is an understatement. Like, that is an understatement. They think this first narrative of Breonna as a suspect could be one reason, on top of COVID-19, that most of the mortuaries they called refused to take her. You know, that was part of the reason, like, people were turning us away. Like, you know, we're calling these churches and, you know, mortuaries, and they're like, is this the young lady, is this the incident, you know, that they, and I'm like, you know, yes,

and I will get back with you and stuff like that. And it was just, it was unbelievable. And they didn't even know her name. Attorney LaNita Baker has been representing the family since even before Breonna Taylor's funeral. She's a personal injury lawyer who used to work as a prosecutor. She went to Breonna's apartment as soon as she was allowed to. Even in being a prosecutor, I had never quite seen that many bullets in one apartment. To know and to see that bullets went through neighboring apartments as well.

Afterwards, in talking to Kenny, when he told me where he was and he was laying on the floor right next to Brianna. It's only a supreme being that, a supreme reason that he's still alive and able to talk to us about it. And I do think that that reason is that we needed someone to tell us the story of what happened so that we could get the change that is needed. So when protesters today say her name, Breonna's family and friends say they feel lifted up. At the same time, they have complicated feelings about the person they love becoming a larger-than-life figure in death. You never would think that her name would be added to a list.

A hashtag. A hashtag. Or, you know, now you write and say her name you just think like how like why is she even part of it how does this happen like and in the sense we're grateful that her name is at where she should be you know unfortunately in this situation but you know we don't want this at all we want we want her back like right like i will i'll rather just go back in time like yeah just crazy do you think something good will come of this i'm praying to god i said, we need real change in America because it's scary. It's like, I got to still raise a little black boy here in this world we live in. Anybody, nobody's safe.

If this can happen to Breonna, it can happen to anybody. Aaronika Hunter was going through Breanna's things after her death and found something she hadn't seen in years, a scrapbook page that Brianna made in high school, memorializing their friendship. This is our senior page from our scrapbook. So the two of you in like a bunch of different photos together, and then what does it say here in the corner? Aaronika is like the sister, the same age as me, that I've always wanted. She is the one who is always there,

right beside me when I need her. Aaronika sets the page and the tiny urn with some of Brianna's ashes next to each other on her kitchen table. Yeah, it's her ashes. I know people think I'm so weird, because sometimes when I need a drink, I sit, I'm pro it up, just like this.

And I talk to her. Talk to her ashes. Across town, there's another image of Breonna. It's a portrait, drawn in chalk, at the center of the protest in downtown Louisville. People gather in a circle around it, chanting. Breonna Taylor! Breonna Taylor! Breonna Taylor! Breonna Taylor! Breonna Taylor! She always said that she would be a legend.

I just never imagined it would be like this. Is that true? She said that? Yeah. I'm going to be one of the greatest. I'm going to be a legend. Y'all going to remember me. Laurie Shapiro's reporting from Louisville. It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Audie Cornish.