MEYER MCCAULSKY
Special to The Leader
On April 20, 2021 Derek Chauvin was found guilty on three counts of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter almost a year after killing George Floyd by kneeling on his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds.
Many were nervously waiting on the outcome of the trial based on the fact that these cases have historically favored the officers.
Fredonia president, Dr. Stephen Kolison admitted, “I watched the announcement of the verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial in Minneapolis, Minnesota. When the judge entered the chamber and took his seat and began opening a brown envelope, my heart began to beat faster. What kind of evening were we going to experience as an institution, state and nation? I said a silent prayer and listened.”
Jamelia Burton, a senior and the president of the Black Student Union at Fredonia had more of a pessimistic mindset before the verdict was announced.
“Unfortunately, I was thinking… there’s a possibility that they may let this man [Derek Chauvin] off,” Burton said.
“So, unfortunately, being Black, people always have to think of the worst because it’s like, ‘What’s hope anymore?’”
Charles Marshall, a junior and a former resident assistant, had a similar mindset.
“What went through my head was kind of like, ‘Why is this verdict even happening?’ because of the fact that we seen [sic] it on video tape. So we came to the point of having to have the verdict, but essentially my feeling was that I don’t know what can happen. And if something does happen that’s very bad, it would end up harming a lot of people and affecting the different cities if justice wasn’t served,” Marshall said.
Kolison shared more thoughts, saying, “Like me, I imagine many of you now feel a sense of relief. However, I know emotions across the country are still raw about what happened to George Floyd. The trial was painful to watch. And while many of us are breathing a sigh of relief with the conclusion of this trial, cries for change and justice for all are not over. The work for equality and justice in all facets of society will and must continue.”
“It will take tough conversations, purposeful interventions and a commitment to fairness. My prayer is always that this work is accomplished through peaceful means and with mutual respect and dignity.”
Burton and Marshall shared different sentiments in that regard.
Burton said, “When he was found guilty, I was… happy for the [Floyd] family that justice was served. But at the same time for me, overall, I feel like they were still going through being traumatized of losing someone they loved, and I feel like it shouldn’t take months.”
She also added that the decision was, “a slap in the face.”
As for Marshall, it was simple.
“I was very happy that justice has finally been served and that people actually have common sense and have human decency to actually protect the man [Floyd] that literally died in front of a camera,” Marshall said.
Although the Floyd family got the verdict they wanted, there’s still a lot of work that needs to be done in fixing the justice system.
Burton said, “For me, I feel like it is a small step forward, but… it’s not enough because there’s so many cases that are not in the news and many people don’t know about… So for me, I feel like it needs to be something done better.”
There have been a lot of positives to take from this verdict. However, there have been mixed feelings about the verdict because of the inconsistencies of the system and that the decision usually favors the police officers.
Burton added, “Some people are missing the whole picture… I’m happy that there are people that are trying to make change but for me the justice system still is not changing, it’s the same. They just play it off, it’s like okay we’ll do this but how can we move forward from this?”
Overall, the result of this case is encouraging.
However, the Black community doesn’t want this case to be a one-off. They want to see some consistency in the justice system.
Whether or not the result will be similar in the Kim Potter v. Daunte Wright case remains unknown at the moment.