Family, supporters march ahead of anniversary of Floyd's death
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A woman spreading flower petals before a march in honour of Mr George Floyd on Sunday in Minneapolis. Mr Floyd was killed on May 25 last year by a police officer, who knelt on his neck for over nine minutes.
PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
MINNEAPOLIS • Supporters and relatives of Mr George Floyd marched ahead of the first anniversary of his murder by a white policeman, a killing that prompted a reckoning on racial injustice in America.
About 1,500 marchers in Minneapolis on Sunday listened to speeches and joined members of the Floyd family and relatives of other black people who died in encounters with the police.
Mr Floyd, 46, was killed on May 25 last year by police officer Derek Chauvin, who knelt on his neck for over nine minutes.
Chauvin, convicted of murder and manslaughter, is to be sentenced on June 25.
The rally opened with speeches outside the Hennepin County Government Centre in central Minneapolis, where Chauvin stood trial.
Mr Floyd's death sparked protests against racial injustice across the United States and around the world.
Veteran campaigner Al Sharpton told the crowd that Mr Floyd's killing was "one of the greatest disgraces in American history".
"What happened to George Floyd, as well as so many others, is driving change not only across America but the world," he said.
"They thought that they could get away with it, and you went to the streets, black and white, young and old, in the middle of the pandemic" to call for justice, Reverend Sharpton said.
"George Floyd should not go down in history as just someone with a knee on his neck, but as a man whose death helped 'break the neck' of police racism, brutality and illegality."
Frustrations have been running high in Minneapolis over mounting violence in the city.
Anger over a soaring homicide rate and other gun violence - a recent three-week span saw three children hit by stray bullets - has led to the formation of citizen patrols.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey plans to add 200 officers to the city's thinned police ranks, and has called for more aid from outside law enforcement agencies.
He supports community-driven efforts, including citizen patrols.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE