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When you travel, you don’t come back home the same. Scroll to view breath-taking landscapes l wildlife l nature l adventure l events
When you travel…
You don’t come back home the same
Signal Call
”Right at this moment, I’ve approached a band of police men and women coming towards me calling out for arrest on the protesters that consisted of tens of thousands. I’ve tried getting out of their way but I couldn’t. They used their riot shields to block in me and other protestors involved from getting out and were forced to be detained. On June 03, 2020, peaceful protesters (Estimated to be over 60,000 people) gathered around at the heart of the city, Downtown Houston to remember and honor the late George Floyd. The event was organized by Trae tha Truth, Bun B & others. Law enforcement officers used tear gas and other riot control tactics to forcefully clear protestors on its surrounding streets across the nation and worldwide.”
- Patrick “P.T.V.” Jones
Who was George Floyd?
Born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, George Floyd was a Houstonian raised in Houston, TX 3rd Ward - a historically African-American neighborhood, who was brutally murdered by a white police officer Derek Chauvin. Arguably, Mr. Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd’s neck for at least eight minutes and 15 seconds. Floyd grew up in Houston, Texas, playing football and basketball throughout high school and college. An influential member of his community, Floyd was respected for his ability to relate with others in his environment based on a shared experience of hardships and setbacks, having served time in prison and living in a poverty-stricken project in Houston. Floyd made series of videos addressing youth in his neighborhood, reminding his audience that he had his own "shortcomings" and "flaws" and that he was not better than anyone else. He also expressed his disdain for violence taking place in the community, advising his neighbors to put down their weapons and remember that they were loved by him and God. After he was paroled in 2013, he served as a mentor in his religious community and posted anti-violence videos to social media. In 2014, he moved to the Minneapolis area, residing in the nearby suburb of St. Louis Park, and worked as a truck driver and bouncer. In 2020, he lost both jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic.
What Happened?
George Floyd shopped at Cup Foods and handed to a cashier a $20 bill where the money happened to turn out fake. The cashier, Christopher Martin, flagged the bill and told his managers. A co-worker called the police, leading to an encounter between Floyd and police. Martin later testified that he suspected Floyd was "high" but that he was friendly and talkative. The U.S. Secret Service confirmed the bill was counterfeit. The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and demonstrations against police brutality that began in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the United States on May 26, 2020 the day after Floyd’s passing.
The protests peaked on June 6, it was estimated that between 15 million and 26 million people had participated at some point in the demonstrations in the United States, making the protests the largest in U.S. history. The protests continued throughout the month of June, and overlapped with Juneteenth. The protests were largely peaceful, but some demonstrations escalated into riots, looting, and clashes with law enforcement officers. Some police responded to protests with instances of violence, including against local and national reporters. The National Guard was deployed in over 30 states and Washington, D.C. to assist police. Many cities imposed curfews. Protests quickly spread nationwide and to over 2,000 cities and towns in over 60 countries in support of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. At least 200 cities in the U.S. had imposed curfews by early June 2020, while more than 30 states and Washington, D.C. activated over 96,000 National Guard, State Guard, 82nd Airborne, and 3rd Infantry Regiment service members. It was said to be the largest military operation other than war in U.S. history when you factor in the deployment combined with preexisting deployments related to the COVID-19 pandemic and other natural disasters. By the end of June 2020, at least 14,000 people had been arrested.
The Aftermath:
On March 12, 2021, Minneapolis agreed to pay US $27 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by Floyd's family. On April 20, Chauvin was convicted of unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter and on June 25, he was sentenced to 22+1⁄2 years in prison. All four officers faced federal civil rights charges. In December 2021, Chauvin pleaded guilty to federal charges of violating Floyd's civil rights by using unreasonable force and ignoring his serious medical distress. The other three officers were also later convicted of violating Floyd's civil rights. Lane pleaded guilty in May 2022 to a state charge of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter and was sentenced on September 21, 2022, to three years in prison to be served concurrently with his federal sentence of 2+1⁄2 years. Kueng pleaded guilty on October 24, 2022, to the state charges of aiding and abetting manslaughter and was sentenced to 3+1⁄2 years in prison, to be served concurrently with his federal sentence. Thao waived his right to a jury trial on the state charge in lieu of a review of the evidence and a determination by a judge. He was found guilty of aiding and abetting manslaughter in a written verdict delivered on May 2, 2023, and he was sentenced to 4+3⁄4 years in prison.
Floyd's murder led to worldwide protests against police brutality, police racism, and lack of police accountability.
Sources:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2020/06/03/in-houston-60000-join-in-peaceful-march-for-george-floyd/
https://www.texastribune.org/2020/05/29/george-floyd-texas-protest-photos-houston-dallas-austin/
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/us/george-floyd-investigation.html
https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/07/us/tou-thao-george-floyd-sentence/index.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_protests_and_demonstrations_in_the_United_States_by_size
Trae The Truth & ABN BTS of a music video for "It Ain't Fair" The video accumulated over 5M views.
Captured by Patrick “P.T.V.” Jones 2020
Mural of the late George Floyd located in Houston, TX Third Ward
photo: Patrick “P.T.V.” Jones
A place you must visit before you die: Yosemite National Park. On March 2023, Yosemite National Park has experienced and broke a significant 54 year record snowfall in all areas of the park, with snow up to 15 feet deep in some areas. It was quite an experience. Despite the heavy snowfall, Yosemite wilderness showcased its beauty that will leave you breathless. Watch to see why Yosemite is one of the TOP 10 national parks visited in the world and across the states.
Yosemite, CA 2023
Nature
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Nature 〰️
Yosemite, CA
Backpacking to Young Lakes, CA. The hike was about 6 hours long from 1:30pm to 7:30pm. We spent the night
Juneau, Alaska - Norris Glaciers 2024
Below are pictures from time spent on the Glaciers in Alaska for the entire summer. Patrick had a wonderful time meeting many unique people from all over the U.S. and different countries throughout the world. Patrick worked and lived on the Norris Glaciers for 6 days or more at a time while having no access to wifi and service. There were times helicopters couldn’t come up to the Glaciers to bring back down the crew to the ground for time off because of the bad weather that would go on. Early April-May, Norris crew got over 12 ft of snow (It all eventually melted down to 4.5 ft of snow) and was currently standing on about 2,100-3,000ft of ice. Patrick had the chance to work with over 195 Alaskan Huskies dogs each with different personalities. Everything on the Glaciers gets brought up and back down by NorthStar. During his time on the glaciers, Patrick served over 6,000 tourists and ran over 300 tours for 4 months taking pictures of tourists dogsledding with dog mushers. Norris crew often spent 6 days or more at a time due to bad weather without having access to wifi, service, and more. Half way through the season, Patrick’s last remaining battery for his cochlear implant was lost while being in a hurried on the way to the Helicopter station work. He ended up having to spend a month without being able to hear. Before arriving to Alaska, Patrick’s dog, Woody chewed apart his right hearing-aid. Despite the setback, Patrick stayed focused on his assignment on the Glaciers until Mid-August towards the end of the season to travel back home (Houston, TX) where he was able to get his hearing-aid issues for his Cochlear Implant fixed at Hearing Health of Houston. It was all thanks to his will to never quit and the help of his Norris 24’ crew making communication and interactions more smoother.
“When I lost my battery on the way to NorthStar Helicopter station, I felt scared and disappointment all over again. I didn't know what to do but I knew I had to keep pushing forward. After arriving to the Glacier, instead of getting upset, my friends chose to find solutions to the problem with me and helped made things better for me. The crew made sure I never gave up especially around foreign tourists that we had to served. It wasn’t easy for any of us but we all pulled through together. That’s what happens when teamwork makes the dream work. On the bright side of the things, it was nice not being able to hear dogs bark all day and night as well as rude comments from customers. My crew showed me that I could trust and count on them which is hard to do nowadays in a rough world and times we live in. Towards the end of the season, I ended up finding the lost battery, however it was still damaged. When I found it that’s how I knew God is always listening and watching you even when you don’t think He is.”
- Patrick Jones
