Black Lives Still Matter - Part 2

This blog was written as part of Charlotte Mecklenburg Library's Black Lives Matter program initiative. Learn  more about the program and corresponding events here.

Last week the man that murdered George Floyd was found guilty by a jury of his peers, was handcuffed, and carted off to prison to await sentencing. I don't believe that people were prepared for the criminal justice system to hold Derek Chauvin accountable for the crimes he committed against George Floyd and it's quite shocking that Derek Chauvin was held responsible. It shouldn't have been, but it was. Many people call this justice, but this verdict was more about accountability. Justice wouldn't let the killing of Black bodies at the hands of police continue to go on. I believe that protesters were fully prepared to cause a stir, and rightly so, there were celebrations in the streets this time. We all breathed a collective sigh of relief when the judge read all three guilty counts, however, it should not be like this.

The trial took several weeks to deliberate, with the world waiting on bated breath. And, if it weren't for Darnella Frazier, I'm not sure we would have reached three significant guilty verdicts. For those who may not know, Frazier was a bystander on the day George Floyd was arrested. She and her 9-year-old cousin happened to be in the neighborhood, along with many other people. They decided to take out her cell phone to record the realities of Floyd's death. First off, I could not imagine the horrors they witnessed -- especially at such an early age. But what I really can't get out of my mind is that without her eyewitness account and video footage (which was the longest and most clear footage recorded that day), would the outcome of the trial be the same? Much like the footage captured of Rodney King, Frazier's video brought the truth to light and ultimately held Chauvin accountable.

Black people's shared experience dealing with the police and lack of justice or accountability is traumatic. The trauma never ends because, on the heels of our collective relief that accountability was served, there was another police shooting of a Black body — this time, a 16-year-old child. There are no words to describe the announcement of yet another Black body being shot down by police. I can gather that numb is a feeling, and outrage. Enough is enough. Reform of the police is a necessity. It will take more than just saying but actually putting it into legislation.  

Since the start of Derek Chauvin's trial, there have been many interactions with police that have happened or been revealed, and it's triggering. People of color have been facing some hard realities these past few weeks. A Black Army Lieutenant, Caron Nazario, was pulled over and harassed by police in Virginia. Although complying with the officer's commands, the officers excessively pursued him and caused an uproar online from the video of the interaction that went viral. Days following the body cam footage of Lt. Caron Nazario's interaction, Daunte Wright was shot and killed by a police officer after being pulled over because he had an air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror. Not even a week after that, police body cam footage was released of a 13-year-old child with his hands up being shot and killed by Chicago police. And even since the initial writing of this blog, there are more names to add to the list of people killed at the hands of police. On top of the Chauvin trial, all these things happened simultaneously, and it's heavy.

Although heavy and traumatic, Black people continue to fight for this so-called justice. All these things are about holding people accountable because justice would require change, and change seems so far away.

True justice comes when there are no longer cases like George Floyd's and all the men and women whose cases came before his and all the cases of the people who don't make national headlines. Black lives still matter.

To read more about the social justice movement, criminal justice, excessive force and the police, check out our Justice and Accountability booklist on the Library's website.

Access the Justice and Accountability Booklist

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This blog was written and a collaboration of thoughts by De'Trice Fox, adult services librarian; Amrita Patel, library outreach coordinator; and Alesha Lackey, children's services manager.