george floyd
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House Passes George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, Republicans Predictably Reject Proposed Reforms
On Wednesday, the House passed a comprehensive police reform bill named in honor of George Floyd, the 46-year-old Black man whose brutal death after being restrained under the knee of a Minneapolis cop helped spur a nationwide movement against racism and unjust police practices in 2o2o. In a clear indication of where the two major…
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Renee Montgomery Windmill Dunks on Kelly Loeffler, Becomes First Former Player to Be Owner, Executive of WNBA Franchise
When former Atlanta Dream guard Renee Montgomery decided to sit out during the 2020 WNBA season in order to focus on social justice issues, it was the officer-related death of George Floyd that compelled her to act. But little did she know that this tragedy would also serve as a catalyst for a series of…
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Capitol Police Says Militia Planning March 4 Attack; General Says Pentagon Took 3 Hours to Approve National Guard to Subdue Insurrection
There’s still a lot being unpacked regarding the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, and it doesn’t help that white supremacist militia groups are apparently planning another attack in Washington, D.C., tomorrow. Yes, tomorrow. That’s according to a release issued by the U.S. Capitol Police on Wednesday, saying the department has received intelligence that a militia group…
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Judge in Derek Chauvin Trial Says Only One of George Floyd’s Family Members Can Be in Court; Other Stories Come Out About Cop’s Use of Force
The presiding judge in the murder trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis cop captured on video kneeling on George Floyd’s neck until he died last year, has ruled that only one of the victim’s family members can attend the trial proceedings. The trial for Chauvin, who is facing charges of second-degree murder and third-degree…
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University of Texas Donors Threaten to Pull Donations If School Gets Rid of Racist Fight Song
Pardon me if you’ve heard this before, but the University of Texas at Austin has a bit of an “OK, so is this racist as hell or nah?” problem when it comes to its fight song. But of course, you knew this already because you read The Root. For those out the loop, however, here’s…
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Prosecutors Seek to Reintroduce 3rd-Degree Murder Charges Against Derek Chauvin in the Death of George Floyd
The Minnesota Court of Appeals heard arguments this afternoon from prosecutors who wish to reintroduce a third-degree murder charge against former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for the death of George Floyd, the Star Tribune reports. Chauvin, who knelt on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes in May 2020, is scheduled to begin trial Monday…
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Louisiana State Trooper Suspended Without Pay After Video Shows Him Kicking and Dragging Ronald Greene Before He Died in Police Custody
Last October, The Root reported on the mysterious and fatal story of 49-year-old Ronald Greene—a Black man who died in police custody after leading officers on a high-speed chase in Louisiana in 2019. It’s a wild yet familiar story where a Black man is brought to the hospital bruised and bloodied. The cops claimed his…
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Las Vegas Police Say They Fatally Shot BLM Protester After He Raised Rifle. Video Appears to Show Something Different
As a news reporter, my rule of thumb is that the media shouldn’t take police accounts of incidents at face value. Law enforcement officers have every reason to lie just as the civilians they police do, and I’ve covered too many stories where video footage contradicted what officers said happened in their reports. Last June,…
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Michigan Police Officer on Unpaid Leave After Being Accused of Sharing Racist George Floyd Meme
There’s a reason I generally never feel bad about the negative things I say and write about police officers. I’ve spent much of my life witnessing the disregard and even the contempt a lot of cops have for Black life. And that’s only based on what I’ve observed in person—I can only imagine what cops…
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Alabama's New Anti-BLM 'Riot Bill' Targets Peaceful Black Protesters. I Know Because I Was One of Them
Finally, all my years of “thugging” have paid off! I’m getting my own law! Although I’ve never rioted, looted or raised a hand at a law enforcement officer, I’ve been confronted by cops, surveilled and arrested for participating in—or, in one case, simply being present during—peaceful protests. As the only Black person standing among a…