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The Andrew Goodman Foundation’s Statement on Guilty Verdict in Chauvin Case

The Minneapolis jury did the right thing by holding former police officer Derek Chauvin accountable for the callous murder of George Floyd. While we are grateful for accountability, we demand justice. The Minnesota Attorney General said it best that justice for George Floyd would mean that he was alive today. One thing is clear—the fight against structural racism does not end here. It must continue beyond the guilty verdict in the Chauvin case.

As we anxiously watched the trial unfold, more Black and Brown Americans were killed by police across the country. Twenty-year-old Daunte Wright, 13-year-old Adam Toledo, and 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant—who was shot shortly after the verdict—are just three of the 64 people killed by police in the United States since the trial started. Each of them should be alive today. Their deaths are a painful reminder of how far we still have to go.

The Andrew Goodman Foundation exists to live the legacy of Andrew Goodman, James Earl Chaney, and Michael Schwerner—three young men, a Black and Jewish coalition—who were brutally murdered by the KKK for confronting racism and defending the voting rights of their fellow Americans. Our founding story reminds us that it is our collective responsibility to call out, condemn, and confront injustice in all its forms. This is our fight. We must all own it.

It has never been enough for us to simply react as we bear witness to the racism and xenophobia, which continue to terrorize people of color in the United States and globally. Enough has been enough for years. If you feel exhausted by the constant news of over-policing, brutality, and murder, take action and make your voice heard:

  • Contact your elected officials about the changes that we want to see,
  • Support urgent efforts by grassroots organizers and nonprofits to bring about more accountability in policing, and
  • VOTE in all elections, including for Attorney Generals and Prosecutors because these races have a far greater impact on our day-to-day safety.

The guilty verdict is an important step in the right direction, but we have not yet arrived where we must go. Will there be accountability for the police who killed Daunte Wright, Adam Toledo, Ma’Khia Bryant, and countless others who were killed senselessly? We must stay focused and stay firm. We have a long way to go before we reach the highest ideal of what our democracy and nation can and should be. We will stop at nothing short of an America where everyone receives equal access, rights, representation, accountability—and justice.