On the recordJune 1, 2020
his name was George Floyd, and 7 days ago he was killed on the streets of Minneapolis. He was not the first African American to be the victim of racism and criminal misconduct by the police. This has happened in our history many times, but this was different. This was a killing which we watched in realtime. In fewer than 9 minutes, a Minneapolis police officer, with his knee on the neck of George Floyd, took his life away. Despite Mr. Floyd's begging over and over again, his pleas that he couldn't breathe, even invoking the name of his mother, it didn't stop what happened. That photo is still emblazoned in my mind, as I am sure it is for all of those who have seen it. The look in that policeman's eyes, in the videotape that was being taken of that incident, was cold, hard, distant and unmoved by George Floyd's plea and the plea of those around him. What a tragic moment for our country. What a tragic moment for that family. What does it say about who we are in the United States of America that in the year 2020 this sort of thing can happen with such frequency? The heartbreaking killing of George Floyd follows years of similar tragedies and needless loss. In 2012, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by a vigilante as he walked home with a bag of Skittles that he just bought from the local 7-Eleven. His crime? Black in America.…
