WASHINGTON -- A video of a D.C. woman telling a homeless man "it's not worth dying for... they're killing us out here," during a police confrontation is going viral after the woman believes she may have saved the man's life.
Grace McKinnon captured cellphone video of a homeless man while he was being held at gunpoint by an officer at the corner of 2nd and Massachusetts Avenue in Northeast, just one block from Union Station.
The homeless man, that she has identified as Anthony, is crying and appears to look at McKinnon and ask "is he trying to shoot me? I didn't do nothing to nobody."
On camera, you can see an officer who has his gun drawn, wearing a lime green reflective jacket, inch forward and shout, "on the ground."
Anthony continues speaking with McKinnon, "you saw me sleeping right?" He looking directly into the camera and says, "I had that knife for my protection, Ms. Lady. I'm out here."
The officers waves to McKinnon and urges her to move away from Anthony.
"Ma'am, ma'am move back. He's got knives," the officer said and pointed to the ground, suggesting that McKinnon move next to him.
"Excuse me, boss man. I don't have knives, that's the only one I had," Anthony said and he began to move closer to the officer as a second officer arrived on a motorcycle.
"Get down on the ground," the officer shouts louder.
"Just get down on the ground," McKinnon tells Anthony. "Don't die. This isn't worth dying for."
Anthony complies. In the video, you see Anthony take a seat. The officer then asks him to roll over. The officer repeats himself several times before Anthony rolls onto his stomach.
"This isn't worth dying for. Just listen to them," McKinnon said again.
The officers ask Anthony to put his hands behind his back. McKinnon reaches down and helps him.
"It's not worth dying for. They're killing us out here," McKinnon said as she reached down and assisted Anthony with putting his hands behind his back.
She tweeted the video Wednesday afternoon writing "I literally think I just saved someone’s life... I’m shaking y’all..." The post has been retweeted 57,000 times.
In an email to WUSA9's Delia Goncalves, McKinnon said she is a social worker and treats people with mental health diagnoses.
"You don’t need to thank me, it’s what we should all do for one another," she said.
McKinnon has now started a GoFundMe for the young homeless man who she said sleeps at Union Station.
