Jacob Blake spoke out from his hospital bed in a video released Saturday night by his attorney, Ben Crump.
Blake was paralyzed from the waist down after being shot seven times in Kenosha, Wisconsin by a police officer responding to a call from a woman who claimed Blake “was present and was not supposed to be on the premises.”
Blake reportedly fought with police, did not respond to a taser, and was in the process of attempting to enter the driver’s side of his vehicle when he was shot. Investigators said a knife was later recovered in the driver’s side floorboard of the vehicle.
The shooting sparked a series of riots and demonstrations in Kenosha.
WATCH:
#JacobBlake released this powerful video message from his hospital bed today, reminding everyone just how precious life is. #JusticeForJacobBlake pic.twitter.com/87CYlgPDBj
— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) September 6, 2020
“I just want to say, man – to all the young cats out there and even the older ones, older than me, it’s a lot more life to live out here man,” Blake said. “Your life, and not only just your life, your legs, something that you need to move around and move forward in life, can be taken from you like this, man.”
“And I promise you the type of shit that you go through, staples, I got staples in my back, staples in my damn stomach, you do not want to deal with this shit, man,” he continued. “24 hours, every 24 hours it’s pain, it’s nothing but pain. It hurts to breathe, it hurts to sleep, it hurts to move from side-to-side, it hurts to eat.”
Blake ended by imploring viewers to “change your lives.” (RELATED: Dan Bongino Breaks Down Jacob Blake Shooting: ‘Facts’ In Officers’ Favor Are Starting To ‘Become More Clear’)
“I’m telling you, change your lives out there,” he said. “We can stick together, make some money, make everything easier for our people out there, man, because there’s so much time that has been wasted.”