The family of the Kenosha shooting victim, Jacob Blake, confirms that the 29-year-old is finally conscious after being shot multiple times on Sunday.
As previously reported, doctors have confirmed that Jacob Blake will be paralyzed after being shot at least seven times by an already identified Kenosha police officer, Rusten Sheskey.
Handcuffed to the bed
Blake’s family recently spoke with CNN, confirming that Jacob is now awake. However, his family is dismayed by the sight of him reportedly handcuffed to his hospital bed.
According to the victim’s uncle, Justin Blake, “This is an insult to injury.”
“He is paralyzed and can’t walk and they have him cuffed to the bed. Why?”
One of the news outlet’s contributors, Andrew Yang, confirmed speaking to Blake’s father. Despite being happy for seeing his son awake and recovering, the sight of him restrained to the bed reportedly angers him.
Yang narrated that Jacob Blake Sr. used the word “chained” to describe his son’s situation. “He said ‘my son is chained up,'” Yang reports.
I just spoke to #JacobBlake Sr. – his son is conscious. His first question after he woke up was "Daddy, why did they shoot me so many times?" He wept to his father. He has restraints on even though he can't move his legs.
— Andrew Yang🧢🇺🇸 (@AndrewYang) August 27, 2020
In addition, Blake Sr. shared the conversation he had with the victim, wherein he was asked by his son why he was shot several times.
When asked for a message, Blake Sr. wanted to remind the public that his son is a human being.
Jacob Blake is “chained up” and when he woke up, he asked why he was shot so many times, his father told @AndrewYang.
“His message to us was to say, ‘my son is a human being.’ It made me very heartbroken,” Yang said about his conversation with Blake’s father pic.twitter.com/v4EcOedDZD— OutFrontCNN (@OutFrontCNN) August 27, 2020
Why was Jacob Blake handcuffed?
As to the reason behind handcuffing, Blake to his hospital bed is still uncertain. Although Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers had already expressed during a press conference that he had “no personal understanding why that would be necessary.”
There’s been quite the online chatter about Blake’s court records, following the incident. Many have pointed out that this might be related to his alleged open arrest warrant—but never officially confirmed. According to Reuters‘ fact-checking research, there is truly an arrest warrant for him dated last July.
However, the facts entailing the accusation have been misconstrued. Facebook has already flagged a few posts about this, tagging it as false information.
Kamala Harris supports the peaceful protests in Kenosha
There have been nightly protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, after the news broke out about Blake’s shooting. This had led to the fire engulfing buildings, cars, and wrecked local businesses.
Deaths have already been reported, with the assailant being a white teen vigilante. President Donald Trump is yet to give comments on the Kenosha shooting, as he closes off the last day of the RNC.
Nevertheless, Kamala Harris, the first Black American woman in the national VP ticket, has already expressed her empathy for the incident and supports the peaceful protests seeking justice.
Kamala Harris on the fatal shooting during a Kenosha protest: "We will not let these vigilantes and extremists derail the path to justice" https://t.co/A0ZztsWSKX pic.twitter.com/QbaFto51Qz
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) August 27, 2020
She also emphasized the difference between peaceful protestors and those that have wreaked havoc within the city. Harris expressed, as quoted by a separate report from CNN:
“We should not confuse them with those looting and committing acts of violence, including the shooter, who was arrested for murder. And make no mistake, we will not let these vigilantes and extremists derail the path to justice.”
Meanwhile, the sports community has significantly expressed its sentiments on the recent shooting of another person of color. NBA players have refused to continue playing as a gesture of support.
WNBA, NHL, and MLB matches have also been delayed, as players strongly show solidarity to the Jacob Blake shooting, per ESPN.
Featured image courtesy of Kelly Lacy/Pexels