8 minutes and 46 seconds.
That’s how long Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, kept his knee on the neck of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man.
On May 25, 2020, George Floyd was brutally murdered by Minneapolis police officers. Suspected to be purchasing a pack of cigarettes with a counterfeit $20 bill, Minneapolis police officers arrested Mr. Floyd and pinned him to the ground. Despite being handcuffed and compliant with the officers, Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd’s carotid artery impeding his ability to breathe. Yet if this terrible display of brutality had not been captured on video, the narrative may have been completely different.
History has been repeating itself. It will keep repeating itself unless the world wakes up and people take it upon themselves to learn about the systematic oppression that exists in every layer of our society against the black community. This is not solely an American issue. The world continues to reap the benefits of exploited labour of our Black brothers and sisters. We need to educate ourselves to understand how privileged institutions continue to oppress this community.
The official autopsy of George Floyd claims that underlying health issues and potential intoxicants in Floyd’s system were responsible for his death. Despite video evidence showing his airflow was restricted and three other officers stepped on his back as he lay handcuffed, the system tried to pin the blame of murder on the victim himself.
This is just one example of the many individuals who were murdered at the hands of police simply because they were black. We can’t begin to imagine how many others died but had no evidence. Police brutality is just one piece of the larger picture of systematic oppression. Millions of black people continued to be impacted by racial bias in health-care algorithms, suffer the toll microaggressions take on their cardiovascular health, and discrimination in the workforce.
We stand in solidarity with the black community. Black lives matter today, tomorrow, and forever but in order for this to occur, everyone needs to act in solidarity. We recognize that it is important for all of us to not only have private conversations with our friends and family but to also publicly show our support and execute actions to implement real change.
So what can you do?
Sign petitions. Donate. Educate yourself on the topics of police brutality and system racism by reading, watching videos and movies, or listening to podcasts. Challenge racist remarks within your families and friend groups. Participate in peaceful protests (while keeping the complexities of protesting during a pandemic in mind). Advocate through social media. Advocate in your communities. Educate others. Be introspective and think deeply about your own biases.
Alongside practicing advocacy, it is also important to remember to always be kind to yourself and others. The large influx of news and social media posts can be overwhelming. If you are feeling overwhelmed, remember that it’s also okay to take a mental break from the news before continuing to advocate. There’s many resources to support Black Lives Matter and uplift our black community, so if you feel we are missing anything, please reach out!
While also taking the time to explore and learn from these resources ourselves, we compiled several resources to support the Black Lives Matter movement and learn more about systemic racism. Please scroll below to find them!
Let us pay tribute to the countless victims of police brutality…
25 May 2020: George Floyd, 59, was killed by Police Officer Derek Chauvin in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Floyd was handcuffed and lying face down on the ground pinned at the neck by Chauvin’s knee. “I can’t breathe” were among Floyd’s last words as he pleaded for his life.
13 March 2020: Breonna Taylor, 26, was shot at least 8 times when 3 officers from Louisville Metro Police Department forcibly entered her apartment while searching for a suspect who was already in custody.
23 Feb 2020: Ahmaud Arbrey, 25, was fatally shot in Glynn County, Georgia by two white males while jogging in his neighbourhood. The males, father and son, were armed and driving a pickup truck and were only arrested 74 days after the shooting.
22 November 2014: Tamir Rice, 12, was shot and killed in Cleveland, Ohio by Office Timothy Loehmann. Tamir was carrying a toy gun when Loehmann shot him almost immediately after arriving on the scene.
30 April 2014: Dontre Hamilton, 31, was shot 14 times and killed by Office Christopher Manney in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Before the encounter, a pair of officers responded to a call, and found that Hamilton was asleep in the park, doing nothing wrong. When Manney arrived, he began to pat Hamilton down and started a confrontation in which he shot Hamilton in the neck, killing him.
9 August 2014: Michael Brown Jr., 18, was fatally shot by Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri. Wilson initiated a confrontation by grabbing Brown by the neck through his car window, threatening to shoot him. Brown and his friend fled, but were eventually stopped. Brown turned around with his hands raised after he was shot in the back, while Wilson then shot Brown and was hit 6 times.
17 July 2014: Eric Garner, 43, died in Staten Island, NYC after NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo put him in a chokehold while arresting him. The previous July, Garner was under suspicion of selling single cigarettes without tax stamps. He stated he was tired of being harassed for this act that he was not doing. He was then placed in a chokehold where he repeatedly said multiple times “I can’t breathe.” After he lost consciousness, officers turned him to the side, where he remained lying on the sidewalk for 7 minutes until the ambulance arrived. He died in the hospital.
August 5, 2014: John Crawford III, 22, was shot and killed instantly by Officer Sean Williams in a Walmart store in Beavercreek, Ohio for holding a BB gun. Crawford picked up an unpackaged BB gun and continued to shop. A customer claimed Crawford was pointing it at others; however, security camera footage showed that the claim was false.
August 11, 2014: Ezell Ford, 25, was shot multiple times and killed by LAPD Officers Wampler and Villegas in Florence, LA while walking on the sidewalk. Wampler stated he knew Ford. Later, it was sound that Wampler actually had not recognized him at the time. Villegas assumed Ford was armed because he was in a “gang area.” Ford was tackled to the ground and was compliant with the officers orders when he was shot.
August 24, 2015: Dante Parker, 36, was riding a bike, unarmed, but because he matched the description of a “burglar”. He was hit with a taser gun over 25 times and left on the ground face down. Parker suffered cardiac arrest and died in a Medical Centre.
These individuals are just a fraction of those in the black community who have experienced police brutality and systemic racism. The list of victims continues…
Tanisha Anderson (37), Akai Gurlery (28), Rumain Brisbon (34), Jerame Reid (36), Tony Robison (19), Philip White (32), Eric Harris (44), Walter Scott (50), Freddie Gray (25), Sean Reed (21), Steven Demarco Taylor (33), Ariane McCree (28), Terrance Franklin (22), Miles Hall (23), Jamee Johnson (22), Antwon Rose (17), Stephon Clark (22), Yassin Mohamed (47), Finan H Berhe (30), Darius Taver (23), William Green (43), Kwame KK Jones (17), De’von Tarver (19), Christopher Whitfield (31), Anthony Hill (26), Eric Logan (54), Jamarion Robinson (26), Gregory Hill Jr (30), JaQuavion Slaton (20), Ryan Twyman (24), Brandon Webber (20), Jimmy Atchison, (21), Willie McCoy (20), Emantic “EJ” Fitzgerald Bradford Jr (21), D’ettrick Griffin (18), Jemel Roberson (26), DeAndre Ballard (23), Botham Shem Jean (26), Robert Lawrence White (41), Anthony Lamar Smith (24), Ramarley Graham (18), Manuel Loggins Jr. (31), Trayvon Martin (17), Wendell Allen (20), Kendrec McDade (19), Larry Jackson Jr (32), Jonathan Ferrell (24), Jordan Baker (26), Victor White III (22), Ezell Ford (25), Kajieme Powell (25), Lacquan Mcdonald (17), Charly Keunang (43), Tony Robinson (19), Walter Scott (50), Freddie Gray (25), Brendon Glenn (29), Samuel DuBose (43), Christian Taylor (19), Jamar Clark (24), Mario Woods (26), Gregory Gunn (58), Akiel Denkins (24), Terrence Sterling (31), Alton Sterling (37), Philando Castile (32), Terence Crutcher (40), Keith Lamont Scott (43), Alfred Olango (38), Jordan Edwards (15), Danny Ray Thomas (35), DeJuan Guillory (27), Patrick Harmon (50), Jonathan Hart (21), Maurice Granton (24), Julius Johnson (23), Michael Dean (28), Jamee Johnson (22), Mike Brown (18), Amadou Diallo (23), Oscar Grant (22), Jon Ferrel (24), Alan Blueford (18), Chavis Carter (21), Sean Bell (23), Tim Stansbury (19), Ramarley Graham (18), Dane Scott (18), Patrick Dorismond (26), Wendell Allen (20), Victor Steen (17), Kendrec McDade (19), Kimane Gray (16), Armond Bennett (26), Derrick Williams (21), Ousmane Zongo (35)
… and countless others. Say their names because they matter. Black lives matter.
RESOURCES:
Consider donating to these organizations and learning about their initiatives:
Non-Monetary Contributions:
Zoe Amira’s Youtube video, "how to financially help BLM with NO MONEY/leaving your house", is composed of music from several black artists and 100% of the money collected from AdSense will be donated to associations that offer protester bail funds, help pay for family funerals, and advocacy for BLM.
Supporting Edmonton’s Black Community :
Afro Biz Edmonton which provides information for local black owned businesses you can support.
Bashir Mohamed, an Edmonton based writer, has created an extremely helpful resource called Edmonton Anti-Black Racism Toolkit to tackle racism towards the black community in Edmonton.
Text:
Text FLOYD to 55156
Text JUSTICE to 55156
Text JUSTICE to 668336
Text ENOUGH to 55156
Petition for Justice:
Youtube videos you can watch to learn more about BLM and systemic racism:
Watch movies/TV Shows:
The Hate You Give
13th
Stranger Fruit
Whose Streets?
The Racial Wealth Gap Explained
When They See Us
Time: The Kalief Browder Story
Strong Island
See You Yesterday
Dear White People
American Son
Clemency
Just Mercy
Selma
Listen to podcasts:
1619 by The New York Times
About Race
Code Switch
The Diversity Gap
Intersectionality Matters!
Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast
Pod For The Cause
Pod Save the People
Read some of these books about race:
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
White Fragility by Robin DeAngelo
The Black Feminist Thought by Patricia Hill Collins
Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon
How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
The Bluest Eye by Tom Morrison
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century by Grace Lee Boggs
Other sources with compiled resources:
Champions of Change UAlberta