Brigham And Women's Hospital Nurses Take A Knee To Support Protests
BOSTON (CBS) - A group of nurses at a Boston hospital took a knee together early Thursday morning to show their support for nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd in Minnesota.
Many of the nurses wore black and some held signs as they joined together outside Brigham and Women's Hospital around 6:30 a.m. before getting down on one knee for eight minutes and 46 seconds. That's the same amount of time former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd's neck during an arrest that led to Floyd's death on May 25.
Chauvin and three other officers were fired and criminally charged. Chauvin is charged with second-degree murder.
"I thought it was very moving to see people coming into work showing solidarity, even if they hadn't planned to protest, to just kneel in support," said Brigham nurse Roberta Biens.
One nurse held a sign that read "You clapped for us. We kneel for you."
"I just want everybody to know they're not alone, we're with them and we'll stand in front of them or behind them, wherever we need to be to support them," Biens said.
The event was organized by the nurses and not the hospital.
"We have a nursing page for the union that we support each other through. One of our colleagues posted she wanted to do something from us, from the nurses of the Brigham and Women's Hospital," Biens said.
A similar event is expected at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
