Photo credit: Black Lives Matter.
“I can’t breathe.”
On May 25, 2020, the world watched in horror when a video of George Floyd went viral. In the video, Floyd a Black man, was handcuffed and pinned down by the now-fired Minneapolis police office Derek Chauvin, who is white.
Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, with 2 minutes and 53 seconds of that time occurring after Floyd became unresponsive.
Officers Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng, and Thomas K. Lane participated in Floyd’s arrest and did not intervene.
Floyd was murdered that day, in broad daylight, and on video. It’s the latest in a seemingly endless stream of senseless attacks on the Black community at the hands of the police officers who are supposed to serve and protect their communities.
Other high-profile murders include:
- The death of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency room technician, who was shot eight times by law enforcement in her own apartment in Kentucky on March 13.
- Ahmaud Arbery, who was shot three times and killed by a white father and son while out for a jog in Georgia on February 23.
- And in Canada — 29-year-old Regis Korchinski-Paquet fell from the 24-floor balcony of her Toronto apartment while police were in her home on May 27.
The recent events, compounded with countless other senseless deaths, have prompted anti-racism protests across the U.S., in Canada, in parts of Europe, and in Japan.
About 4,000 people have been arrested in the U.S. since Tuesday because of the riots, CNN reports.
Here are some ways you can help protestors.
DONATE
- The National Bail Fund Network is a bail fund network comprised of more than sixty community bail and bond funds across the U.S.
- The ACLU provides legal services and support for people with civil rights complaints.
- The Know Your Rights Camp, founded by Colin Kaepernick, has established a legal fund from Minnesota protesters.
- The Northstar Health Collective is providing medical services at some protests.
- The George Floyd memorial fund
- Fight for Breonna
- Black Visions Collective, a Black, LGBTQ-led justice organization and legal fund in Minneapolis.
PETITIONS
- Justice for Regis Korchinski-Paquet
- Justice for George Floyd
- A call for body cameras for the Regional Halifax Police (Canada)
- Justice for Breonna Taylor
COMMUNITY SUPPORT
- Join a community clean-up
- Call your local officials and police stations and demand accountability.
- If you are a business owner or an academic institution, make a public statement condemning police brutality and racism of all kinds. Offer mental health support to employees, students, and faculty who may need it.
- Check-in on your staff and students. Understand many people are grieving and may be unproductive.
- Promote diversity AND inclusion every chance you get.
- Speak out against discrimination in all its forms.
- Check-in on friends and family members.
- Work with local anti-racism charities and organizations.
RECOMMENDED READING
- Cognitive reserve and racial privilege in STEM – By Mélise Edwards
- Sorry, I can’t just focus on the science – By Naia Butler-Craig
- Anti-racism resources – by Sarah Sophie Flicker and Alyssa Klein
- This Twitter thread by Sarafina Nance
This is an ongoing list and will be updated periodically.