The white men who chased and killed Ahmaud Arbery as he ran on a residential street remained free for more than two months, with police and prosecutors appearing to accept their story that the young Black man was a fleeing criminal who turned and attacked before being fatally shot.
Judge Regina Chu ordered Potter taken into custody and held without bail, and scheduled her to be sentenced on Feb. 18. As she was led away in handcuffs, a man in the courtroom shouted “We love you, Kim!”
Former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin pleaded guilty Wednesday to a federal charge of violating George Floyd’s civil rights, averting a trial but likely extending the time he is already spending behind bars on a state conviction.
When Erica Cobb, co-host of the Daily Blast Live, first stepped into the world of mainstream news over two decades ago, she overheard a conversation in which an industry person considered Cobb the perfect minority for a particular role because, although she is Black, to them she “didn’t come across like a Black person” based on a stereotypes in their head.
In recognition of a mass communication sector that has been struggling from dwindling advertising dollars and intense competition from well-funded media conglomerates and a field of small niche publishers since the inception of the internet, Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state Legislature appropriated $10 million in new funding for ethnic media in the state budget for 2021-22.
There will be no probation for former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin. The ex-cop received more than a 22-year prison sentence on Friday, June 25, two months after a jury convicted him of three charges, including second-degree murder, in the death of George Floyd. Chauvin’s attorney Eric Nelson had requested probation, but the judge rejected that plea. Nelson filed a motion for a new trial just before sentencing, contending that Chauvin did not get a fair trial. Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill also denied that request before sentencing the callous ex-cop. Prior to sentencing, Floyd’s seven-year-old daughter, Gianna, provided a
“For courageously recording the murder of George Floyd, a video that spurred protests against police brutality around the world, highlighting the crucial role of citizens in journalists’ quest for truth and justice,” the Pulitzer Board wrote.
The U.S. House passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in March, but the bill has stalled in the even-divided Senate. The measure would prohibit federal, state, and local law enforcement from racial, religious, and discriminatory profiling.
In the midst of an unprecedented pandemic where intimate physical interaction created the risk of contracting COVID-19, protesters called for justice, confronting the hard reality that incidents of police brutality, which have disproportionately resulted in the injuries and deaths of people of color, persisted across the nation.
In a primetime interview aired on ABC News’ “Soul of a Nation,” on Tuesday, Rep. Bass expressed her disappointment in Congress’ inability to reach a deal by the anniversary of Floyd’s death but said she felt confident that she and her fellow legislators will reach an agreement soon.
George Floyd’s horrific murder one year ago has ushered in a new era of accountability where it’s not enough to simply say “Black Lives Matter.” It’s time to show it in our actions and decisions.
Remembering George Floyd: a National Call to Action
Members of George Floyd’s family, and others who lost loved ones to police encounters, joined activists and citizens in Minneapolis on Sunday for a march that was one of several events planned nationwide to mark the one-year anniversary of Floyd’s death.
“When I got the paper, I literally at one point said, ‘hot damn,’” says Phillip Goff, a behavioral scientist at Yale University who wrote a commentary on the study published in the same issue. “I was a skeptic about demographic reform previously, and now I am a convert.… Demographics reform in policing actually has the potential to dramatically change behavior.”
It was much more than a political assessment when I declared 15 months ago that “we know Joe, and most importantly, Joe knows us.” Joe Biden is succeeding because of he understands the needs and aspirations of the American people. His bold and inclusive initiatives are restoring the faith of those who have been hardest hit by the current health and economic crises and raising the hopes of those who had already been hard hit by injustices in our society long before these crises struck.