Public Citizen Statement on the Conviction of Derek Chauvin
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, former police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of the murder of George Floyd. Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen, released the following statement:
“Nothing will bring George Floyd back to his family or his community. And there should be nothing to celebrate in a jury doing its job in finding Derek Chauvin guilty of the crime the whole world saw him commit. Nonetheless, in a country where police are rarely held criminally liable for murdering people, especially Black and brown people, this is an important moment.
“Refusing to tolerate the police killing of yet another Black person, Black communities across the country responded to the murder of George Floyd with righteous anger, insistent demands for justice and love, and forced the country to be a national reckoning on racism and police violence.
“Holding abusive police to account – including through criminal prosecution – is necessary but not close to sufficient, not when it comes to police violence and certainly not when it comes to redressing systemic racism.
“What all of us owe to George Floyd and his family, to Daunte Wright, Breonna Taylor and their families and to far too many others is a commitment to continue relentlessly the fight for racial justice.”