Chapter 1 - Transcript

SOULEYMANE GACKOU (English Subtitles)

 You take a gun and kill someone just like that. Why did he do it? Why

This is not normal. We have to find out why the suspect did this

You take twenty dollars and you kill – then it’s over

Mamadou supported a lot of his family – that’s why he was driving a taxi

He didn’t drive a taxi to die like this

The suspect killed not 1 but 30, 40 people whom Mamadou was supporting

That’s what he did – now it’s all over

The suspect had no idea what he did killing just like that. You should not kill

Only God has the right to kill

Allah u Akbar (God is Great)

BALDE

We are here for the killing of Mamadou Gackou. It’s an assassination. We cannot tolerate.. this young man – he’s dead. We are here for the mourning. We are here to invite you to cry with us. We are from Africa. We need protection. The mayor has to take off the streets all the guns. If you have guns, you get killed. Guns.. like candy for kids – it’s a game, killing somebody. The first thing is to take all the guns out, check all the cars.. take out the guns.. Protect us. Africa made America from the slavery till now. We need protection. We need.. Stop killing the taxi drivers. Stop now. We are a public service. You have to respect the taxi driver. Don’t kill us. It’s a mourning, Mamadou Gackou’s mourning. He’s dead. He left three kids, a wife, he is a father. We need to be protected. Help us to help you. Anytime you need a cab, you find.. we are here but a dead person cannot drive a car.

ABUBAKR

I’m from Senegal, Dakar. I am from the same country than the victim... We all came here, all foreigners, to make a living, a better living – like ancestors of the people that built this country. We, all cab drivers, feel disappointed about what just happened.. and it’s going to keep going on... Who’s going to be the next – that’s the question – who?

ASSALE

Living in Europe for 13 years, I never see people treating the cab drivers like that – like in United States.. I never see that.. Never.. In France, Italia, England not like this country.. I never see somebody treat a cab driver like in United States.. I don’t know why.. I don’t know why...

ABDIRAHMAN

If you are an immigrant, they take advantage, all the time... Especially, if you are a cab driver and also an immigrant, they will take advantage.. they think that you’re an alien...And it’s easy for them to kill you and no investigation in the future.. The police don’t care about cab drivers. Honestly, the don’t care.. If they cared.. it happened not only this once, but this happened so many times.. So if the police cared about the cab drivers of Philadelphia, they will do a great job.. I don’t think they care – the killing of a cab driver is just a foreign guy who died – so they don’t care..

KUBI

They should be stopping killing people. They should be stopping killing people.. That’s the best way.. We should cooperate to each other..They should be stopping killing people.. I don’t know why are they killing people.. We are so good to everybody, take care of everybody, we serve the way we can serve the people..I don’t know why are they killing people.. It’s nothing to them.. It’s nothing.. It’s nothing – to be killing people.. There’s nothing there.. The best way – they should stop killing people.. They should stop killing people – that’s it, it’s over – they should stop killing people..

YAMBA

We realize that this is hate being directed to us... So, we’re asking the city to help us control this kind of violence that is being directed to us. So, that’s why we are gathered here today to let the people know that we are very much concerned about this unwarranted acts violence everywhere in the city.