It has been almost a year since George Floyd was killed by former police officer Derek Chauvin. The death of Floyd led into the whole world calling for justice against his killer. It was not until Tuesday that a verdict had been reached in this very public trial.
Chauvin had been a part of the police force for nearly 20 years at the time of his arrest in May of 2020. Videos of an attempted arrest on Floyd went viral when it was seen that Chauvin had his knee on the neck of Floyd. This caused an outrage worldwide and many protests ensued in the following weeks for justice for Floyd.
Many sports organizations all around the world held a moment of silence or took a knee at the beginning of their games to let everyone else know that they were fighting along with everyone involved.
For example, Jadon Sancho, a professional soccer player for Borussia Dortmund, lifted his jersey after scoring a goal, revealing a message that read “Justice for George Floyd” on his undershirt.
Athletes across the world shared the same message in many different forms and wanted to let the protesters know that they wanted change and reform as well.
College of the Canyons political science professor Phil Gussin took note of how politicians reacted to the verdict.
“While there was overall agreement with the verdict, what struck me most was that politicians,” on both sides of the aisle made a point of saying that more work needs to be done,” said Gussin
Chauvin had been found guilty by the jury on three separate charges: second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter.
“President Biden called on the country to acknowledge and confront the racial disparities that exist in policing and in our criminal justice system more broadly,” Gussin said.
After the verdict had been read out loud, there were protests that questioned if justice had truly been served. Protesters took to the street to voice their opinions even more so that they can be heard.
“Senator Tim Scott (R-SC), the only Black Republican in the Senate, spoke about the need to repair the tenuous relationship between law enforcement and Black and minority Americans,” said Gussin.
“What remains to be seen is whether Democrats and Republicans can work together to put those words into action by passing meaningful legislation,” said Gussin.
