Remembering George Floyd and the Movement He Sparked, One Year Later

One year ago today, the world watched while George Floyd was murdered at the hands of a policeman on an American street corner. His death resonated deeply in America’s consciousness, joining a distressing if familiar chorus of names, from Breonna Taylor to Ahmaud Arbery, killed by police or extrajudicial violence. The swift public reaction to Floyd’s death transcended anger and outrage, moving people to act.

In the weeks after the world witnessed that unbearable 9 minutes and 29 seconds, reports show as many as 26 million Americans took to the streets, joining peaceful protests in hundreds of cities to voice their demand for change. It was very likely the largest collective action ever on U.S. soil. In his untimely death, George Floyd sparked a movement that sought to reckon with the legacy of racism as the coronavirus pandemic was at its height.

That is why today, and every day, at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, we remember George Floyd and so many others whose lives were taken abruptly. Their tragic deaths spur introspection and action. 

History teaches us that action in the name of the fallen can bring about powerful change. There are few better examples than Emmett Till, the 14 year-old who was beaten and lynched in 1955 while visiting relatives in Mississippi. Following her son’s death, Mamie Till-Mobley did something extraordinary: she decided to hold a public funeral with an open casket. Thousands of people attended, with pictures published in magazines, fueling a national outrage.

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