The conviction of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd has provided a sense of closure on a moment of collective grief and anger experienced around the world. Nevertheless, the assault on Black and brown lives as well as systematic racism continues and must be stopped through federal policy and increased social impact.
While we acknowledge that justice has been served, we also recognize Mr. Floyd’s death was not an isolated incident, but was a part of a broader pattern of racial discrimination and police misconduct.
To this end, we call for bipartisan legislative support of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which would prohibit racial profiling by law enforcement, ban chokeholds on suspects, eliminate no-knock warrants in drugs cases, overhaul police training to build trust, install more civilian oversight and require transparency around misconduct cases.
The deaths of George Floyd, Eric Garner, Laquan McDonald, Micheal Brown, Breonna Taylor and countless others who have wrongfully died at the hands of police brutality must not be in vain. At New Community, our commitment to these efforts remains strong and we pledge to continue our work to hold the line and press for racial justice and equity for all.
In solidarity,
A. Zachary Yamba
Chairperson, New Community Corporation Board of Directors
Richard Rohrman
CEO, New Community Corporation
