Watch: Dounya Zayer Brooklyn protester suffers seizure after being violently pushed to street pavement during protests by Officer Vincent D’Andraia.
A 20-year-old Brooklyn protester allegedly suffered a violent seizure after being forcefully shoved to the ground during NYC demonstrations amid national arrest over black man, George Floyd’s death at the hands of a white Minneapolis cop.
Video caught the moment, Dounya Zayer being approached by a uniformed NYPD officer during demonstrations and hurling her to the pavement with outstretched hands.
In a series of posts on Twitter, Zayer told of being rushed to an emergency centre after suffering a seizure and was recovering from a concussion at the hospital.
‘I want to make one thing clear about this situation. In no way was I aggressive towards this police officer and I did not even get in his physical space,’ she said in one post. ‘I did NOT spit in this officer’s face. I was wearing a face mask. He told me to get out of the street and then immediately threw me out of the way.’
Social media has since identified the officer who threw Zayer to the ground as Officer Vincent D’Andraia of the 73rd Precinct.
Dounya Zayer manhandled: NYPD cop who shoved George Floyd protester charged
Vincent D’Andraia, the cop who threw Dounya Zayer to the ground while she was peacefully protesting, was a fucking Ward Melville lax bro from Stony Brook. pic.twitter.com/2mp19y3x6N
— 🐌 (@somefuckinlady) May 30, 2020
Rogue cop with history of police brutality against blacks
Adding in another post, ‘I was protesting for a reason, and the officers at these protests should back down. They should apologize, because they’re wearing blue. And they are part of the gang that killed George Floyd. And them acting the way they did today isn’t helping the cause. It’s not proving to us that they care about us. I wasn’t aggressive to the police officer and even if I was, he should have had the self restraint to not hurt the people he is supposed to be protecting. That’s the point of them being an officer. They’re suppose to protect us.’
Whitney Hu, an activist also taking part in the protest, first posted the video of Zayer being flung to the ground by the police officer and lying still for several seconds before eventually holding her head as other protesters rush to help her and call for people to take his badge number.
‘The cop pushed her so hard at Barclays & she flung back. She is tiny. Now she’s in the ER after a serious seizure. I’m waiting for updates but have to wait outside because of COVID-19. Please keep my protest sister in your thoughts,’ Hu wrote.
Of note, activist, Shaun King posted, D’Andraia having a history of brutalizing ‘Black people all over Brownsville.’
It remains unclear what actions, if any, Officer Vincent D’Andraia will face.
Spread the word. #VincentDandraia is the officer on video assaulting @zayer_dounya. pic.twitter.com/qlKkrbWiNL
— Jonny Daytona, Regular Human (@GonSmithe) May 30, 2020
— Dounya Zayer (@zayer_dounya) May 30, 2020
