Exercise
Tap all the highlighted words in the transcript below to see their definition. ⇩Do you know what has happened since George Floyd, an unarmed black man, was killed by police last month?
The short answer: A lot.
Here are some of the more positive events that have taken place since May 25.
Worldwide Protests
Protests and riots started the day after George Floyd was killed. They began in the U.S. but quickly spread around the world.
Charges
Derek Chauvin, an officer involved in the killing of George Floyd, was arrested on May 29. He’s been charged with second-degree manslaughter and murder.
On June 3 three former Minneapolis police officers who were connected to George Floyd’s death were charged with aiding and abetting.
Statues
On June 4 the governor of Virginia ordered that a statue of Robert E. Lee be taken down (Lee was against equal rights for African Americans). The statue is currently still standing; however, it is now covered in graffiti.
Three days later in Bristol, England, a statue of Edward Colston, a slave trader, was thrown into the ocean by protesters.
Rising support
In Washington, D.C. on June 5, “BLACK LIVES MATTER” was painted on a street near the White House. The painting, which is 11 metres high, was ordered by the mayor of D.C.
That same day, the NFL said that they were wrong for opposing players’ peaceful protests against racism and police brutality (such as kneeling during the national anthem).
On June 10, NASCAR banned the confederate flag, which is a symbol of racism, from all of its facilities.
Police reform
On June 12, the city council in Minneapolis voted to disband the police department and replace it with a community public safety system.
Colorado removed “qualified immunity” from its police force on June 19. Qualified immunity protects police officers from being punished by the law in some cases.
Bretty Hankinson
Police officer Brett Hankison was fired on June 23. He was involved in the shooting death of Breonna Taylor, a black woman who was killed by police in her own home.
Black lives matter
Here are some things you can do to help the black community in the fight for social justice:
- Share information (from black sources) on social media
- Donate to an organization that needs funding
- Sign a petition
- Support black businesses
Whatever you do, don’t stay silent!
Development Racial Movement Comprehension
Hi, these hostories are intersting, I loved…
We have to tackle difficult issues sometimes to make the world a fairer place.
Thank you
🙂
Não gosto que coloquem ativismo como
Lição de classe… não concordo com essa posição do “Live black matter”… para miim toda vida importa…. toda injustiça tem que ser combatida… quando você rótula uma injustiça você está propiciando a alguém se
Locupletar com isso. Quando dissermos: “Não a violência.”…. não precisa de adjetivos como … contra os negros, contra os brancos, contra as crianças, contra os idosos, etc… Tem que ser ponto final… é apenas “não contra a violência”… portanto fica aqui meu protesto contra essa forma de ensinar…. se continuar com esses temas eu saio do grupo 🤷♂️
Hi Lúcio, thank you for your comment. We feel it’s our duty to tackle current social injustices if we have a platform to do so. We all want an equal world where nobody suffers from any form of bigotry. I hope you are well.
This is the interesting topic, I think this article got a lot of people attention
It is a very important social issue we need to tackle.
This story is very important and interesting.
I am glad you found it helpful.