LGBTQ leaders and groups joined demonstrators at Washington Square Park on January 28 following the release of body camera footage showing the police killing of Tyre Nichols, who died three days after police officers beat him in Memphis, Tennessee.
The fallout stemming from the incident, which took place during a traffic stop on January 7, continued to unfold on January 31 when the Memphis Police Department announced that a seventh officer had been suspended. Previously, a white officer, Preston Hemphill, was revealed to have been involved in the incident. Five police officers were initially arrested.
The Memphis Fire Department announced on January 30 that two emergency medical technicians and a lieutenant were fired for failing to follow proper operating procedures during the incident. Nichols was subsequently transferred to a hospital, where he suffered a heart attack and kidney failure leading up his death three days later.
The video footage was released on January 27, sparking multiple protests across the country.
