Jacob Blake, the black man who was shot seven times by a white police officer in the US state of Wisconsin last month, has said he is in constant pain in a video posted online.
Mr Blake, who , according to his family, may now be paralysed from the waist down, also struck a hopeful note, saying there was a lot more life to live.
The 29-year-old was shot in the back as he was being arrested.
The incident re-ignited protests over racism and police brutality in the US.
Some of the protests in Kenosha, the city where Mr Blake was shot, turned violent, with two people killed.
An investigation into Mr Blake’s shooting is still ongoing.
Meanwhile, Mr Blake appeared in court on Friday, pleading not guilty to criminal charges filed before the shooting.
In a video posted to Twitter by his family’s lawyer, Mr Blake – still in his hospital bed – spoke of the pain he was suffering.
According to him, every 24 hours it’s pain, nothing but pain. It hurts to breathe, it hurts to sleep, it hurts to move from side to side, it hurts to eat.
He also told his family and supporters to stick together, make some money, make everything easier for their people out there, because there’s so much time that’s been wasted.
It will be recalled that a police officer shot Mr Blake while trying to arrest him as he tried to get into a car where his three children were seated.
Mr Blake was not armed when he was shot but a knife was later found in his car by investigators.
Jacob Blake’s shootingnVideos of the shooting, which were uploaded online, sparked a series of protests in Kenosha, which turned violent at points. Two protesters were killed amid widespread looting and vandalism. A 17-year-old has been charged over the deaths.
Both President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden have since visited the city.
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