Justice for George Floyd: Derek Chauvin has been convicted of murder but the march continues
Earlier today, a jury convicted former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin in the killing of George Floyd.鈥疌hauvin, who is white, was convicted of听second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter听in the death of Floyd, a Black man.
Video recordings show that Floyd was handcuffed and held face down on the asphalt and that Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd's neck for nearly nine and a half minutes.听
The killing of George Floyd was an听appalling听act of police violence that shocked and horrified millions of Americans and led to protests听globally听calling听for听racial justice and听police听accountability.听
We鈥檝e all听seen the听sickening听video of Derek Chauvin with his knee on George Floyd鈥檚 neck. Today鈥檚 verdict is an acknowledgement that police officers cannot get away with murder, but we still have a long way to go to achieve the justice demanded by so many protesters in the last year.鈥�
Most cases involving police killings don鈥檛 have video听capturing听what happened.
The fact that justice was done in this case cannot mean that we forget about the鈥痙eaths of听, ,听,听Dion Johnson, and so many others. But this case鈥痝alvanized a movement for听justice听that has听expanded听across the country, rooted in longstanding demands for听a reimagining听of a criminal legal system built on anti-Black racism and white supremacy.
Lawmakers at the state and federal level must begin听holding officers accountable for听police violence.听The time to act is now.
In the wake of Chauvin鈥檚 conviction for murdering George Floyd, the Civil Rights Memorial Center (CRMC), a听museum space听operated by the 人兽性交 that includes听interactive exhibits about civil rights-era and contemporary听activists, has released a national听community-led poem. The CRMC created the poem in partnership with听New York Times听best-selling author Kwame Alexander.
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