Two years ago today, George Floyd Jr. was murdered in broad daylight after Minnesota officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck for more than nine minutes. The killing was captured on a now-viral livestreamed video as in the final moments of consciousness, Floyd called out for help from his deceased mother.
Floyd’s death brought attention to other killings of Black people like Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor. His death, two months into the coronavirus lockdown, pushed Americans and citizens all over the world over the edge, which led to the largest protest in American history. The summer of 2020 brought every celebrity, public figure and everyday person together for the sole purpose of ending unjust killings. Today, President Joe Biden is set to sign an executive order to institute police reforms.
“Police cannot fulfill their role to keep communities safe without public trust and confidence in law enforcement and the criminal justice system,” the White House’s statement reads. “Yet, there are places in America today where the bonds of trust are frayed or broken. To heal as a nation, we must acknowledge that fatal encounters with law enforcement have disproportionately involved Black and Brown people.”
The order creates a new national database of police misconduct and mandates body-worn camera policies to increase accountability as well as ban the use of chokeholds and “carotid restraints unless deadly force” is authorized in addition to restricting no-knock warrants. Updated approaches to training are also enforced with the order.
Floyd’s death led to many companies and media brands, like USA Today, changing its style to capitalize the letter “B” when describing Black people. It led to Juneteenth becoming an official federal holiday. It led to PR statements from virtually every major corporation pledging to do more for the Black community, which included donating more money to Black businesses and historically Black colleges and universities. Athletically, high school superstar and social media sensation Mikey Williams said he was going to continue his career at an HBCU, which led to 5-star Makur Maker committing to Howard, Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders taking a coaching job at Jackson State, and 2021 No. 1 high school football recruit Travis Hunter committing to JSU to play for Sanders.
Floyd’s death empowered citizens to speak up and record police interactions with Black people. It normalized acknowledging some of America’s deepest issues in entertainment settings designed to numb the mind to said darkness. Floyd was a 46-year-old father who had more to give to his family before his life was taken by the knee of Chauvin on May 25, 2020, but his death brought more than he could ever imagine to Black people all over the world.
