One of the most controversial members of Congress, Rep. Jamaal Bowman, made headlines again with a provocative post before leaving office.
As Jim Hoft reported, Daniel Penny was acquitted on Monday after more than 24 hours of deliberation over five days. Penny faced charges of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide after placing Jordan Neely in a chokehold during an altercation. The manslaughter charge was later dropped, leading to the jury finding him guilty of the lesser charge.
The case stemmed from an incident on May 1, 2023, when Neely, displaying erratic behavior and shouting threats at passengers, boarded an F train. Penny, trained in chokeholds during his military service, subdued Neely for several minutes until he stopped moving. Neely was later pronounced dead. Neely had 42 prior arrests, including one for attempting to kidnap a young girl, and had an active warrant at the time of his death.
However, Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), known for his prior incident of pulling a fire alarm in the Cannon Building, took to social media after the verdict to make inflammatory remarks.
In a tweet, Bowman addressed “Dear White People,” writing, “I don’t know why I feel the need to keep talking to you,” before accusing white people of being part of a system of white supremacy. He called out “hypocrisy” and expressed disappointment in the system, despite saying he wouldn’t rely entirely on others to work for justice.
Bowman continued, referencing high-profile cases of police brutality like the deaths of Rodney King and George Floyd, before focusing on the case involving Neely and Penny. “Jordan Neely is the latest. He was sick. He was not a threat. He was subdued. Still not a threat. Daniel Penny choked him for 6 minutes. And killed him. We all watched it on camera, and he was still acquitted,” Bowman lamented.
He then turned his attention to white people’s supposed lack of understanding regarding the issue, claiming, “I’ve left out probably another hundred instances of this trauma in my life. For comparison, I ask white people, how many times have you seen a white man killed in cold blood on camera on your newsfeed? How many times have you even heard about this?” He framed the issue as a systemic problem of white supremacy without offering concrete evidence.
After posting the racially charged rant, Bowman faced severe backlash on social media, with many mocking him, referencing his previous fire alarm stunt, and criticizing his comments.
