Rayshard Brooks may be gone, but never forgotten.
A funeral was held for the 27-year-old Black man on Tuesday, at Atlanta’s historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. served as co-pastor. Brooks died after he was shot and killed by police in a Wendy’s parking lot in Atlanta on June 12, just weeks after the fatal arrest of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Brooks’ death sparked even more outrage across the country amid the Black Lives Matter movement and ongoing protests.
A number of Brooks’ family and friends were in attendance, including his wife, Tomika Miller. Rev. Raphael Warnock also gave a shout-out to a few notable celebrities, like Phaedra Parks, T.I. and Tiny Harris and Tyler Perry.
Brooks’ mother-in-law, Rochelle Gooden, was one of the first to speak during the ceremony, saying, “He always took me as ‘Mom,’ and I always took him as ‘Son,’ because that’s what he was to me… and he still is, in my heart, my son.”
“Rayshard took care of his family like any other young man could do,” she added. “He tried to do what he could do and he did a good job.”
Rev. Bernice King, the youngest child of MLK, then delivered a passionate speech about Brooks, at one point referencing her father, and the continued fight for racial justice.
“Tragically, here we are once again. But the Bible directs us in times like these to mourn with those who mourn. Therefore I, along with this nation, mourn with you, the Brooks family, today as our family,” she said. “My father often reminded us… that what affects one directly, affects us all indirectly … it affects all of us and pulls at our heartstrings.”
“I will continue to pray for each of you,” she continued. “Rayshard Brooks’ life matters, and he should have been able to live.”
Brooks’ cousin, Jymaco Brooks, spoke similar words about the impact this death has had on not only their family, put people around the world.
“When we sit in here and look at one another, we have to be thankful for what we got while we have it,” he said. “Because when it’s gone, you just look around and think about what you don’t got. For all of us that are still here, throw away your grudges.”
“I love my Black people,” he added. “I’m proud of my Black people. And no matter how many times they beat us down, we still stand up as Black people.”
360aproko reported earlier this month that Tyler Perry would be paying Brooks’ funeral costs, along with college education funds for all four of Brooks’ children — Mekai, 14, Blessing, 8, Memory, 2, and Dream, 1.
“We do want to acknowledge and thank Tyler Perry, who we spoke with and who will be taking care of the funeral for the family,” attorney L. Chris Stewart said during a press conference. “It’s support like that and it’s people who are actually in this community, that love the community, that want healing, and [want] families like this to never have to go through something like this. It’s a step forward.”
