The teenager who recorded the arrest of George Floyd has been honored with an award for courage at a virtual gala.
On May 25, the death of 46-year-old African-American George Floyd shocked the world after footage showed him being pinned to the ground by three Minneapolis police officers after he was accused of buying cigarettes with a counterfeit $20 bill.
Despite repeatedly telling the officers that he couldn't breathe, the New York Times reports that officer Derek Chauvin held his knee on Floyd's neck for at least eight minutes and 15 seconds.
By the time paramedics had arrived on the scene, Floyd was unconscious and showing no signs of life. He was later pronounced dead at the Hennepin County Medical Center roughly an hour later, BBC News reports.
The witness video of Floyd's arrest stunned the world, and led to major protests across the US, as people called for an end to the systemic injustices carried out against black people and police brutality.
The protests - some peaceful, some violent - have inspired change, as people around the world proudly said together: Black lives matter.
Now, the young woman who recorded Floyd's arrest has been honored with an award for courage by the literary and human rights organization PEN America, USA Today reports.
Darnella Frazier, 17, was the person who stood by and recorded Floyd's arrest as he was being taken into custody in Minneapolis on May 25.
After posting the video to social media, it quickly when viral, and helped to spark the Black Lives Matter movement. It also led to the dismissals and arrests of officer Chauvin and the other three officers involved.
In a statement, PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel praised Frazier's "exceptional courage", writing:
"With nothing more than a cell phone and sheer guts, Darnella changed the course of history in this country, sparking a bold movement demanding an end to systemic anti-Black racism and violence at the hands of police.
"Without Darnella’s presence of mind and readiness to risk her own safety and wellbeing, we may never have known the truth about George Floyd’s murder."
Frazier - who was taking her nine-year-old cousin to nearby Cup Foods when she spotted Floyd being detained - said in response to the recognition:
"I never would've imagined out of my whole 17 years of living that this'll be me.
"It's just a lot to take in, but I couldn't say thank you enough for everything that's been coming towards me."
Back in June, Frazier's attorney, Seth Cobin told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that the teenager wasn't looking to be a hero, but insisted that she is "just a 17-year-old high school student, with a boyfriend and a job at the mall, who did the right thing."
He went on to describe her as "the Rosa Parks of her generation."
