#203, George
On May 25, Minneapolis police responded to a call about a man who had used a supposed counterfeit twenty dollar bill to buy cigarettes. The man's name was George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American man from Texas. 17 minutes after that call, he was dead.
One of the police officers who responded to the call was Derek Chauvin. After arriving at the scene, he restrained Floyd, putting him face-down on the street and forcefully applying pressure to his neck. Floyd's breathing became labored as he repeatedly uttered the phrase,
He said this fifteen times but Chauvin did not let up. After 8 minutes 46 seconds, Floyd lay motionless on the ground, dead. He was killed in broad daylight over some supposedly phony bill. Chauvin’s actions clearly violated Article 5 of the UN Human Rights which states:
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
When he forced his knee into George Floyd’s neck making him unable to breathe it was clearly cruel and inhuman treatment. Chauvin could have restrained Floyd in a myriad of different ways, yet he chose one that was so unnecessarily evil.
To complete this Journal response, address the following:
What is a human rights issue you personally believe deserves more attention today? Provide a real-world example to support your response.
Comment on a peer’s response.
-Brenden Lee Teacher