Photojournalist Injured by Minneapolis Police During 2020 Uprising Has Entered Hospice

Linda Tirado, a journalist who was shot in the eye by Minneapolis police while covering  unrest in the city following the 2020 police-murder of George Floyd, has entered hospice care. 

According to a statement released by the National Press Club, of which Tirado was a 2020 John Aubuchon Press Freedom Honoree, the 42 year old photojournalist, “is at life’s end and receiving palliative care.” She was 38 years old at the time of the incident. 

Tirado was blinded and lost her left eye. She also suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of being shot in the face by a ‘less-than-lethal’ projectile fired by Minneapolis police. She was wearing protective goggles and her press credentials were visible when the incident took place.

In an op-ed Tirado wrote for NBC, she said of the life-altering encounter, “I was lining up a photo when I felt my face explode.” She continued, “My goggles came off and my face was suddenly burning and leaking liquid, the gas mixing with the blood…

I threw up my arms and started screaming ‘Press, I’m press,’ although I’m not sure if anyone could hear me with my breathing apparatus and the general chaos around me.”

Tirado drove from Nashville, Tennessee to Minneapolis to cover the uprising in 2020. She is an acclaimed journalist who has covered many protests across the country including the ones that followed the police-murders of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Anthony Lamar Smith in St. Louis.

In 2014, Tirado released a memoir entitled “Hand to Mouth: Living in Bootstrap America,” about the effects of living in systemic poverty.

Tirado, along with others injured by Minneapolis police during the uprising, sued the city. In 2022, she was awarded $600,000 as part of that settlement. 

The settlement money went to Tirado’s extensive medical bills. She has not been able to work since the attack. 

The National Press Club statement explained, “Now we have learned that she has traumatic brain injury from the blow and corresponding dementia. While she has battled, her condition has continued to worsen.”

You can help support Tirado and her family financially by donating to her Venmo: Linda-Tirado-3.