Photo Credit: AFP

George Floyd, the African- American whose killing by police inspired worldwide protests calling for an end to racism and police brutality, was buried in a cemetery on Tuesday in his hometown of Houston, Texas.

The black man died May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes. A video captured by a bystander showed Floyd pleading for air and calling out for his mother.

Floyd, 46, was buried next to his mother.

The funeral followed days of public memorials that drew thousands of mourners, including one on Monday in Houston, one over the weekend near his birthplace in North Carolina and one last week in Minneapolis.

Tuesday’s funeral service started at The Fountain of Praise church about 45 minutes after its scheduled start time because so many were in attendance.

In delivering Floyd’s eulogy, civil rights activist the Rev. Al Sharpton said there is an “intentional neglect” in the U.S. toward punishing people who kill black Americans.

“If four black cops had done to one white what was done to George, they would be sent to jail without hesitation, Sharpton suggested.

“Until we know the price for black life is the same as the price for white life, we’re going to keep coming back to these situations over and over again,” Sharpton said.

Joe Biden, the former U.S. vice president and presumptive 2020 Democratic presidential nominee, said in a pre-taped message played during the service that Floyd’s death is a reminder of the country’s “racism that stings at our very soul.”

“Now is the time for racial justice. That’s the answer we must give to our children when they ask ‘why?’ Because when there is justice for George Floyd we will truly be on our way to racial justice in America,” Biden said.