But as many Twitter users posted with hashtags like #BlackLivesMatter, #DyingWhileBlack and #HandsUpDontShoot, some white users posted confessions to crimes they said they had gotten away with, using the hashtag #CrimingWhileWhite, with the intent of showing a racial double standard in policing.
Garner died after being grappled to the floor by several New York police officers during his arrest for selling loose cigarettes in Staten Island. His death was caught on videotape.
Jason Ross, a writer for The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, has been credited for starting the hashtag and pushing people to share their stories:
According to Topsy, a social analytics company, the hashtag has been used in more than 225,000 tweets between Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning. Here’s a sampling:
As a passenger, told an officer my name was none of his f--king business, but that I wanted to know his. Matter dropped. #CrimingWhileWhite
Witness Protesters Taking Over the Streets After the Eric Garner Grand Jury Decision
A group of protesters rally against a grand jury's decision not to indict the police officer involved in the death of Eric Garner occupy the eastbound traffic lanes of the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City in the early morning hours of Dec. 4, 2014.Jason DeCrow—APProtestors block 15th Street near Pennsylvania Avenue to protest the Staten Island grand jury's decision not to indict officer Daniel Pantaleo in the Eric Garner chokehold case in Washington on Dec. 3, 2014.Jim Lo Scalzo—EPADemonstrators march through the streets of New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Andrew Burton—Getty ImagesRegina Bates speaks during a demonstration in Oakland, Calif. on Dec. 3, 2014. Elijah Nouvelage—Getty ImagesPolice stand guard on the West Side highway as protesters block traffic in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Shannon Stapleton—ReutersAnwar Thurston, 36, joined demonstrators who gathered to protest the Eric Garner grand jury decision during a Christmas Tree lighting ceremony at City Hall in Philadelphia on Dec. 3, 2014.Mark Makela—Getty ImagesA demonstrator cries while gathering to protest the Eric Garner grand jury decision during a Christmas Tree lighting ceremony at City Hall in Philadelphia on Dec. 3, 2014.Mark Makela—Getty ImagesDemonstrators block traffic on Highway I-395 in Washington on Dec. 3, 2014. T.J. Kirkpatrick—Getty ImagesProtestors lay down in Grand Central Station during a protest in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014.Timothy A. Clary—AFP/Getty ImagesPeople take part in a protest against the grand jury decision on the death of Eric Garner in midtown Manhattan in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Eric Thayer—ReutersProtesters raise their arms and chant at police officers in Times Square in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Caitlin Ochs—PolarisDemonstrators march in protest on the streets of St. Louis on Dec. 3, 2014. Michael B. Thomas—AFP/Getty ImagesPolice officers block protesters from marching up a highway entrance ramp near Times Square in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Seth Wenig—APA man holding a child walks with protesters as they march past Radio City Music Hall in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Adrees Latif—ReutersAtlanta Police face off with protesters blocking Spring Street in Atlanta on Dec. 3, 2014. Erik S. Lesser—EPAA demonstrator stands next to a makeshift memorial where Eric Garner died during an arrest in July in the Staten Island borough of New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Shannon Stapleton—Reuters
