Has America Seen A Shift Since The Death Of George Floyd?
A mural of George Floyd in Los Angeles. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
By: Cory Utsey
May 25 marked one year since George Floyd’s life was stolen by ex-officer Derek Chauvin.
Many people throughout the country honored his life by way of memorial events and marches, as members of Floyd’s family met up with the president, vice president and other lawmakers.
George Floyd family speaks after his death
The past year has seen a number of cultural, political and social shifts, as the death of George Floyd woke many people up to the way in which injustice is not some past notion, native to the Jim Crow era-- it has a strong, invasive presence in the modern world.
Much has changed, and much has remained the same, but below we will discuss some of the things that have taken place in the United States since May 25 of 2020.
1. Derek Chauvin was convicted of murder.
Chauvin’s case, which lasted almost one full month, resulted in him being found guilty of the following three charges: second-degree manslaughter, second-degree unintentional murder and third-degree murder. The charges collectively add up to approximately 75 years in prison, with the second-degree murder charge holding a maximum of 40 years alone. The other three former officers who were present at the scene (J. Alexander Kueng, Tou Thao and Thomas Lane) were brought up on federal charges and are still awaiting trial.
2. Congress passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.
This bill was initially set to reach President Biden’s desk by the one-year mark of George Floyd’s death, and that date has now passed. Nevertheless, the bill was introduced by Representative Karen Bass last June and it was passed by Congress that same month. It ultimately addresses a number of policies that relate to police reform and accountability, such as the creation of the National Police Misconduct Registry, which would collect data on police misconduct and require updated reporting requirements. Skeptics of the bill believe that it is well-intended, yet are unsure if it would actually be implemented in a manner that brings about true, tangible change.
3. “Defund” and “abolish” are now a part of many people’s vocabulary.
Police brutality, along with the idea that the police need to be defunded or abolished are nothing new; Black activists have long covered these sorts of topics. However, the death of Geroge Floyd, along with many other police-involved deaths that have taken place, have caused many to question the function, competency and “reformability” of a police system that has long abused Black and brown people. The phrases “Defund The Police” and “Abolish The Police” were often chanted and written across poster boards during the protests that took place last summer. Although the idea of defunding or abolishing the police is quite controversial, many have proposed that much of the money used to fund police departments would be better used if it were reallocated to address other issues, such as mental health.
4. Everyone wants to appear “woke”.
Companies and people alike are now doing more to appear “woke”, meaning that they want to appear as though they are concerned with social justice and racism. “Black Lives Matter” now sits in the bios of various influencers. Companies continuously release commercials that address racism. Even in animated television, non-Black voice actors have stepped down from their roles of voicing Black characters. Many people cite these changes as performative, but they have become quite common nevertheless.
For many people, a lot of the social, political and cultural shifts seen in the United States have been ingenuine; many feel as though different sectors of society have adapted the belief that “Black Lives Matter” as a way of avoiding cancellation, as a way of pandering to the Black community, or as a mixture of both.
Even so, it is undeniable that the death of George Floyd has changed the way that many people view race and race relations in the United States, as these tensions and injustices have long existed. But it is also undeniable that it should not take the loss of someone’s life for people to be willing to listen.
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