JADE’s Statement on the Chauvin Trial Verdict

Our thoughts are with George Floyd’s family and friends; may they find peace, even in their enduring loss.

Today, many people around the country – around the world – shared in a sense of relief when a guilty verdict was read in a small courtroom in Minneapolis. The shocking 9 minutes and 29 seconds of incontrovertible horror that took the life of a man was nothing short of a murderous act, and the jury agreed. And yet we still held our collective breath as the judge began to read. While today a jury of brave men and women returned a guilty verdict, this is just the beginning as there is much more work to do.

To that end, we need to:

• Attract empathetic candidates to law enforcement, to teach compassionate forms of policing, supplemented by mental health professionals who can defuse situations by offering intervention and care;

• Give police officers the tools and training to do their jobs, so as to avoid needlessly violent behavior;

• Hold those who violate our laws, no matter who they are, accountable; to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to build further trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve;

• Find ways to create a criminal justice system that is less violent and less deadly, especially for Black and Latino Americans, that reliably and consistently provides justice for all;

• Fight against ingrained biases and erase the thinking that Black men and women are threatening, just by their mere existence.

For all of those who said no more and became activists – raising their voices and hitting the streets during a pandemic, standing up for Black Lives, and for justice – we salute your fortitude and stand with you.

Thank you to Attorney General of Minnesota Keith Ellison, to the prosecutors; to the police captain and the police officers who testified and upheld their responsibilities.

Today, in America, accountability mattered. May it continue to prevail.

George Floyd changed the world. Say his name.