Teen Who Recorded George Floyd's Final Moments To Be Honored Tuesday In Virtual Ceremony

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The teenager who sparked a global movement with her video of George Floyd's final moments will receive a prestigious award Tuesday night for her courage.

PEN America is set to honor Darnella Frazier with its 2020 Courage Award. Frazier, a 17-year-old high school senior, used her cell phone on May 25 to record video of former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin pressing his knee against Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes, even after the handcuffed Black man went unconscious.

"With nothing more than a cell phone and sheer guts, Darnella changed the course of history in this country, sparking a bold movement demanding an end to systemic anti-Black racism and violence at the hands of police," said PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel, in a statement earlier this year.

Frazier will be honored during a virtual ceremony Tuesday night. The event will be live-streamed here and on the PEN America YouTube page.

PEN America is a nonprofit that works to defend and celebrate free expression. Past recipients of the Courage Award include activists at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the Women's March, Flint, Michigan water contamination whistleblowers, and those who survived the 2015 Charlie Hebdo terror attack.