BROOKLYN – The woman injured at an anti-police brutality rally after being shoved to the ground by an officer set up a gofundme page to raise $5,000 to cover medical expenses, lost wages and continued protests against the use of excessive force by police, she said on Friday.
"I just want everyone to know this (incident) is not going to intimidate or deter me from marching and doing my job as a cop watcher," Elsa Waithe, a 26-year-old interior painter and an activist with NYC Shut It Down said.
Her fund had raised $780 as of Friday evening.
Waithe injured her ribs, back and head after being pushed onto a metal tree guard at Flatbush Avenue and Sterling Place during the April 14 protest, she said.
Bystanders recorded a video of the incident.
Waithe said she was doing nothing wrong when police officers monitoring the demonstration asked protesters to move off the street onto the sidewalk as they walked up Flatbush Avenue toward Prospect Park Tuesday afternoon.
The activist said she had been walking on the sidewalk for a few minutes when she saw police officers rushing to arrest a teenager standing next to her.
"I was about to film (the arrest), I was performing my duties as a cop watcher, our job is to observe the police and record arrests," Waithe said.
But before she had time to pull her phone out, a NYPD officer violently shoved her to the ground, she said.
"The incident happened so fast. It was rough, I felt the shove on my chest, I don't remember hitting my head or my side because I blacked out. When I became conscious again, I felt a sharp intense pain on my side. It was so intense I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe properly. For a moment I thought I had been shot," she said.
Waithe was taken to Methodist Hospital and released the next day.
She might have hairline fractures and doctors advised her to rest until she felt completely recovered, she said.
Waithe, who lives in Brooklyn and is also a stand-up comedian, said she decided to launch an online fundraising campaign when she realized she wouldn't be able to work for the next few weeks.
"It definitely still hurts," she said on Friday. "There is also a psychological factor going on, thinking about the incident is more than upsetting. I don't know why I was pushed, it's very confusing and scaring to me."
Waithe said that the $5,000 will help cover her medical expenses and living expenses during her recovery.
Additionally, she plans to use the money to buy two new phones, one for her partner who lost hers on the way to the hospital, and one for her so she can continue to record police activity, she said, adding that her phone has been damaged during the incident.
A NYPD spokesman said the officer involved is being investigated by the Internal Affairs Bureau.
The Civilian Complaint Review Board has not received any complaints regarding the April 14 incident.
