People around the world on Tuesday marked the first death anniversary of George Floyd, a Black man who was murdered by a white police officer in Minneapolis, US. Floyd, 46, died after Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for about nine and a half minutes. Chauvin was convicted last month of murder and faces sentencing on June 25.
While police brutality against people of colour, especially those from the Black community, has been a growing matter of concern in the United States, George Floyd’s death became a watershed moment in American history with a rejuvenated Black Lives Matter movement. The video of Floyd’s murder sparked outrage across the world which only intensified as more details about the incident emerged.
A transcript of the minutes leading to George Floyd’s death showed he uttered “I can’t breathe” more than 20 times and was told by Chauvin to stop “yelling”. Black Lives Matter protests, which at times turned violent, received unprecedented support from politicians, celebrities, as well as business leaders who highlighted the disproportionate risk that Black people face in the law enforcement and justice system.
Observing the death anniversary of George Floyd, US state secretary Antony Blinken said that the nation must face the reality of racism at home in order to be a credible force for human rights around the world. Taking to Twitter, Blinken said, “By addressing our shortcomings openly and honestly, we live up to the values that we stand for worldwide.”
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Former US president Barack Obama said that hundreds more Americans have died in encounters with police since the murder of George Floyd but the year has also given “reasons to hope.” In a series of tweets, the first and only Black president in American history asserted that “more people in more places are seeing the world more clearly than they did a year ago.”
“When injustice runs deep, progress takes time. But if we can turn words into action and action into meaningful reform, we will, in the words of James Baldwin, ‘cease fleeing from reality and begin to change it,’” he added.
US senator Elizabeth Warren said that she’s committed to keeping the fight to pass the ‘George Floyd Justice in Policing Act’, a civil rights and police reform bill drafted by Democrats, as a step towards cementing the “unshakeable truth that Black Lives Matter.” The NBA’s social justice coalition has also called on the Senate to pass the bill to honour the memory of Floyd and “others who have been victims of police brutality.”
“A year ago today we didn’t know his name, but now it’s forever etched in our consciousness: #GeorgeFloyd,” tweeted iconic talk show host Oprah Winfrey.
Formula One champion Sir Lewis Hamilton said that George Floyd wasn’t supposed to die that day and the “impact of his life and its unfair ending remains with us.” “What does justice mean for a daughter who lost her dad? For a woman who lost her partner? For a man who lost his brother? What does justice mean when a man’s life is stolen because of nothing more than the colour of his skin?” the British racing driver asked rhetorically. “Rest in peace, George Floyd. Your time here was cut far too short. Your legacy will last forever,” he added.
Here are some of the reactions marking George Floyd’s death anniversary:
