Opinion: ‘Can we talk about George Floyd?’ Minnesota Star Tribune readers respond

Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of guest commentaries online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

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One of the harder things in life is to avoid relitigating the past.

About a month ago we invited Minnesota Star Tribune readers to be part of a continuing conversation about the murder of George Floyd, which was committed by a police officer on May 25, 2020, at the intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue S. in Minneapolis. That spot is what’s now known as George Floyd Square, a definitive name that belies the uncertainty surrounding it. The officer would be Derek Chauvin, he of the knee-on-neck restraint strategy, one he persisted with that day until well after Floyd ceased to breathe.

You pick your terminology — a self-infliction by the victim, an execution by the officers, an abomination above all. There are still people who take umbrage at our use of the word “murder,” even though that was the finding in a court of law.

Whichever, the events of that Memorial Day evening five years ago were followed, as you well know, by mass protests, by disastrous rioting, by a debate on the role and history of urban policing, and by a reckoning about the pervasive role of race in society’s interactions.

Yes, one of the hardest things to do in life is to avoid relitigating the past, while refusing to forget it, and while always — always — trying to learn. What follows is a collection of responses to our callout — some of which responded to our specific prompts, others of which didn’t, and all of which, in total, are a snapshot of where Minnesotans stand five years after that fateful day.

David Banks, commentary editor

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What I do for a living has been in the news a lot lately, which is both gratifying and disconcerting. I have been a high school history teacher for 31 years, and never has my particular profession received as much interest, scrutiny and criticism as it has in the last five years.

The reasons are many and varied — the removal of Confederate War monuments, cancel culture, the killing of Floyd, a global pandemic, the 2020 election, impeachment, MAGA, RBG, CRT and the CDC. The list goes on, and so does the absurdity of folks who have convinced themselves that truth is a zero-sum proposition.

The most important thing I’ve learned from teaching history for three decades is that nearly everything changes over time. Memories and majority opinions change. Interpretations of events and people and conflicts change. Heroes, villains and scapegoats change. And, yes, even the things we like to call truths change. The passions of the present are inevitably softened by the accumulation of perspective. History proves that time and again.

So embrace the reckoning. An invitation to grace on race is beckoning, and we will all be judged by future generations on how we respond. Count on it.

Steve Werle, Minneapolis

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It’s one thing to hear/read in the media about murder. It was another to actually see the murder of a human being. I will never forget what I saw and how Floyd begged those stoic policemen and how the public begged for help for him. It tore my heart out, and even now I cry about it.

Marsha Wolk, St. Louis Park

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We learned an important lesson from Darnella Frazier when the Chauvin verdict came in. Bearing witness can change everything.

Carol Bungert, Minneapolis

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I am a retired police officer. The thing that shocked me the most, aside from Floyd’s death, was that the police officers involved were denied something we all are entitled to — due process.

Within 24 hours, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and then-Police Chief Medaria Arradondo had decided that Chauvin was guilty, without an investigation. No wonder that the city’s Police Department is short of officers.

Terry Bryers, Coon Rapids

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The reaction in Minneapolis to Floyd’s death was a contributing factor in the election of Donald Trump as president.

Fritz Klotz, Minneapolis

Was there a specific moment subsequently when you noticed your own thinking or behavior shift because of the national conversation that followed those events?

In 2022, we were returning rented bicycles in a small town in Belgium. The operator asked where we were from in America. “Minneapolis,” we replied. The man stared blankly and shook his head. “Minnesota,” we said. Same response. I then said “George Floyd.” His eyes widened and he nodded.

Ken Schik, Champlin

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I was haunted by the images of Floyd being murdered. Yet, it was observing the staff of color at a nonprofit I work with that shook me in a different way. They could not work; they were limited in their ability to communicate. I began to realize in a small way that this murder symbolized their struggles. I decided to get smarter and read “How to Be an Antiracist” by Ibram X. Kendi, then I read “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents” by Isabel Wilkerson. “Caste” changed me forever. I have a long way to go in my drive to be a better person and reduce my baked-in bias. Even though the tsunami of current events dulls the tragedies of the past. I am in a better place to help with change.

Dan Kinsella, Minneapolis

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I am an 82-year-old white male. I grew up where Floyd was murdered. Like many others worldwide, I was horrified watching the video of that crime. As troubling as the video was, an experience the next day more deeply affected my thinking and behavior about race and fairness.

I called my friend Russ. For more than 15 years he has convened a multigenerational, multiracial Peace Circle in St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood. I asked him if he planned to convene a special meeting that evening. He said yes and invited me.

We sat in circle with 10 others, each expressing what we were feeling. Two Black men described their gut-wrenching reactions. One described entering his closet, collapsing into a fetal ball and screaming. The other described an out-of-body experience, as though he was at the site of the murder observing from above. I knew from my professional life his response mirrored that of victims of severe trauma — a dissociative state.

As appalled as I was watching the video, I realized I did not experience their depth of fear and rage. Never for a moment had I thought that knee could’ve been on my neck — that it could have been me.

Jay Lindgren, St. Louis Park

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My then-16-year-old son and I grabbed brooms to help with cleanup. It was the first day after the riots. I didn’t fully comprehend how impactful Floyd’s murder had been on the world, but I wanted my son to see why the community seemed to be coming together and falling apart in the same moment. As we joined the gathering around “the fist” at 38th Street and Chicago Avenue S. in Minneapolis, a young reporter from Barcelona, Spain, pulled me aside. We were all masked, per COVID rules. As the camera rolled, she asked me why I would bring my son to such a place of violence. I answered something to the effect of him seeing what hate and injustice does. I then asked her about racism in her native Spain, to which she tilted her head and responded: “We don’t have it.”

Tom Olson, Maple Grove

How are your thoughts about the murder and unrest different from your initial reaction in May 2020?

My first thought was this is very sad but it doesn’t concern me; my subsequent learning (over five years) is that I am deeply embedded in, complicit in and profit from our country’s racial violence. I am forever indebted to George Floyd’s death for awakening me, and I hope thousands of others, to the horrors of racism. I want to live long enough to see meaningful change in this country, where parents of color no longer need to teach their sons to fear the police.

Kathy Weber, Plymouth

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Floyd’s murder taught me an ugly truth: Black lives matter only when the privileged, including newsmakers, say so.

As a college-educated, middle-aged white woman, I had prided myself in being fairly “woke” (yuck word). I’m deeply embarrassed that it took Floyd’s murder to grasp how uneducated I really was/am about historical, systemic injustice for Black Americans.

I thought the remedy would be a personal reeducation mission — books, social platforms and discussion on racial injustice. I also got heavily involved in Black Lives Matter/George Floyd organizing and protests. In retrospect, did it matter? Yes. It made me a better human and advocate. That has value, in my humble opinion. But for BIPOC? Hardly. The fleeting activism reinforced mistrust, false hope and — understandably — rage. Even worse, apathy. Now I just feel embarrassed about my naivete. My message: I’m sorry we failed you.

Stacia Goodman, Minneapolis

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While in the beginning I was in the camp that Floyd was murdered and I was angry, I have changed my thoughts. No, he shouldn’t have died. But, like so many, he brought on the actions that caused his death. He just should have listened. Also, when his background was disclosed on his prior arrests: aggravated robbery, drug use and more, I did a 180 on my support for him. He was not a man of good character. I hate what his death did to our nation as well. The entire narrative of the police department’s ability to serve the public has changed, and so has the mentality of the criminal. They have gotten too brazen knowing they likely won’t have to pay for their crimes.

The revolving door at City Hall in Minneapolis was already pretty active, but after George Floyd, it became the standard. Blue can’t do their job and the criminals know it. I have always lived in the city or a first-ring suburb. I was living in St. Louis Park a mile from Uptown. Because of the decline in Minneapolis, especially the crime, I bought a house 45 minutes from downtown a year ago, and now I feel safe again.

George Floyd has also given birth to a very sad narrative I see in my college-educated daughter and her college-educated friends. They all think the police are the bad guys and have been for a long time. They have no faith or trust in law enforcement, and it’s maddening because it’s not how I raised my daughter. That is more about indoctrination by the radical liberal colleges, but was reinforced with the George Floyd incident. My daughter graduated from a liberal arts school in Chicago in 2014 and the George Floyd incident gave her ammunition for her narrative that “Blue is bad.” Not the daughter we raised.

Katie Carsi, Howard Lake, Minn.

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I used to be on the left side of the DFL Party. Then George Floyd happened. The initial horror of it, the virality of it, thrust Minneapolis into the national spotlight. At first it seemed that it might have been a galvanizing moment that could really change things. It didn’t take long before the scam artists and catastrophe vultures displaced the sincere cries of despair and disgust and calls for change.

The resulting displays of flagrant self-dealing, rank incompetence and plain old corruption on the part of Black Lives Matter, Feeding Our Future, the Minneapolis City Council and countless newly sprung “nonprofits” have pushed me firmly to the center.

Activists are good at activism. They are not good at governance. When they seize or are placed in positions of responsibility, activists behave like badly raised, uncooperative children. I hope that the next election sees this city come to its senses. We need to elect people who will do something about the issues that affect people’s lives in Minneapolis and kick out the people who’d rather spend our tax dollars drafting virtuous declarations about Gaza and handing out city contracts to their friends.

Xandra Coe, Minneapolis

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I never thought I would be saying this: I need a break from the equity, diversity, justice and racism rhetoric. As I am writing this, I am thinking: Wow, is this politically correct? Should I be expressing this? Is this acceptable?

I truly believe all should be treated fairly and equally and given the opportunity to succeed. But in an effort to give the underserved a voice and opportunity, we have forgotten to include everyone.

I’m not sure if society is able to look at everyone and form opinions on actions rather than on labels or groups, but that is how I want to live.

So, I am tired and I need a break. I will still treat others with respect and judge them on their character.

I was born and raised in Minneapolis. We have lived in our Minneapolis home for 31 years. We live 1.3 miles away from George Floyd Square.

Becky Eggers, Minneapolis

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Like most people, I was horrified at Floyd’s murder. Still am. Floyd was not a particularly good person, to be generous, but in no way did he deserve the death sentence for his crimes.

Since Floyd’s murder, I’ve been disturbed by what I perceive to be the left’s singular focus on police injustice toward Black people. Police injustice toward Black people happens and is disturbing. But police injustice happens to other races, too. The Washington Post has a police homicide database going back a decade or so. White people are killed by police about twice as often as Black people, and you’ll find plenty of cases in the database where the victim wasn’t armed. Still disproportionate on a per capita basis, I know, but it’s not like Black people are the only ones unjustly being killed by police.

Here’s the real problem. In Minneapolis, 18% of the population is Black people, yet they represent 65% of the homicide victims, and are 76% of the known perpetrators. Well more than 90% of murders of Black people are committed by civilians.

If we in society want to maximize positive impact, our primary focus should be toward the biggest problem. Police injustice is a problem for Black people, but it’s nowhere close to the biggest problem.

Mike Shulman, Minneapolis

What has surprised you most — or least — about how society has responded?

How quickly society’s guilt dissipated once Derek Chauvin went to jail. People truly saw this as the action of one renegade cop rather than the culmination of more than 200 years of state-sponsored violence against Black people, that they participate in and benefit from.

Ini Augustine, St. Paul

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I am gratefully surprised that the murder of George Floyd caused and continues to cause open, frank and uncomfortable discussions about the role of policing in the United States. For virtually my entire life (I am 72), up until Floyd’s murder, the question of how the police should do their jobs was rarely discussed. People in general, especially white people, just didn’t think about it. Policing, except during presidential election campaigns, was just background noise. Watching the blasé manner in which Floyd was choked to death changed all that. It shocked us. It was an Emmett Till moment.

Minnesota Star Tribune opinion editor Phil Morris’ column asks: “Can we talk about George Floyd?” The answers are yes, we can, and we will. Will the frequency of our talks diminish? Will the role of policing become background noise again? Probably, but the basic tone of that background noise has changed, and that is my second grateful surprise. Young people watched Floyd die a painful death. Those images will stay in their memories forever. Will they automatically grant the police unlimited power to intimidate us? The answer, surprisingly, is no.

John Velie, Minneapolis

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Least surprising is the speed at which this incredible “moment in history” went from cacophony to a mere whisper — almost forgotten. Very sad.

Gerry Nichols, Naples, Fla.

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What has struck me most? The realization that the more we talk about the problems of race in America, the bigger the problems seem to become. Time for a new tack?

Doug deGrood, Edina

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I was surprised at how entrenched sides on the matter of Floyd’s death became. There were stances taken that were either pro-police and anti-Floyd or vice versa. I was also surprised at the unfortunate destruction of so much during violence that created food deserts and damaged medical clinics, including the one I worked at, that hurt the very communities that were underserved and hurting the most. Five years later I am surprised at the amount of traction politicians have had in making some people think DEI is a dirty word instead of an effort to right historical wrongs.

Brian Hansen, North Oaks

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I was most surprised by the immediate and lasting effort (driven by politicians, institutions and corporations) to broaden the conversation into one about racism in general. That is obviously a vital conversation that our society has had before and will need to continue having. But it often took away from the facts of what spurred this particular moment: a police officer killing a man over the course of several minutes while other officers let him.

Because the conversation was not specific, this allowed the “solution” to become corporate diversity initiatives and individual education. These things are incredibly important, but to me they also served to yet again avoid reckoning with policing and the justice system in ways that could truly transform our society for the better.

There were certainly some powerful people reframing this conversation with intent, but I also think a lot of well-meaning people wanted to preempt the backlash to a potential radical transformation by leaning into something more palatable like opposition to racism in general. This clearly did not work out, as the backlash happened anyway and now we are suffering the consequences with the resulting initiatives and education more at risk every day.

Connor Holt, Minneapolis

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I thought it would be obvious and urgent to everyone that our Police Department and public safety needed to be completely restructured — I misjudged how cognitive distortion makes people go to battle for a status quo that deeply harms them.

Jill Bernard, Minneapolis

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What has surprised me the most is the number of people who somehow associate Gov. Tim Walz with the murder and the unrest following it. Many blame him for crime in the Twin Cities and accuse him of not responding soon enough or strictly enough to the violence. This is coupled with their opposition to some of the mandates Walz had to propose because of the pandemic — wearing masks in public, calling off high school sports and urging everyone to get vaccinated. I am proud that we have a governor who looks out for the health and welfare of Minnesotans.

Mary Sullivan, Franklin, Minn.

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When I traveled to the island off of Senegal from which enslaved people were sent to the Western Hemisphere, I saw a huge statue near the dock that celebrated Floyd. As a Minnesotan, I was quite surprised to see that, not realizing the full reach and impact of the tragedy.

Donna Sternberg, Eden Prairie

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As I reflect on the George Floyd incident, what has surprised me most is the global impact this incident has had. People who travel have come saying things like: “When I tell anyone that I am from Minnesota, they respond: ‘Oh, that is where George Floyd was killed.’ ”

This global awareness is magnified when you realize that people from all over the world are coming to visit George Floyd Square.

The fact that Minneapolis seems unaware of the importance of this site is the most surprising thing of all.

Larry Walker, White Bear Lake

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While there is much I can say in response to your question, I will try to answer concisely; I have the vantage point of being the husband of Angela Harrelson, who is Floyd’s aunt. I have witnessed not only the family’s reaction to his murder on May 25, 2020, but also the world’s outpouring of compassion, empathy and anger. Five years after the broadcast of Floyd’s murder first aired, people still come from all over the world to the intersection of 38th and Chicago in Minneapolis. They come to express empathy, offer encouragement, share love, along with showing by their presence that the community is not alone. What happened here is happening anywhere people are oppressed, or ostracized as “the Other” because of their race, or their faith, or their status. I am amazed that the response continues just as intently now as in 2020.

Vins Harrelson, Eagan

Lingering doubts

After watching the Alpha News documentary “The Fall of Minneapolis,” it’s clear that no one intended to kill anyone that day. The body cameras don’t lie. The police officers called for paramedics. What no one talks about is the confusion that caused them to delay efforts to resuscitate George Floyd. Floyd resisted and refused to cooperate with simple, polite requests. The officers showed incredible restraint, begging him to sit in the car. It’s clear from his words and behavior that Floyd was in distress, saying he couldn’t breathe long before any knee was applied. Derek Chauvin may have used the knee much longer than necessary, but the technique was clearly an approved method taught by the Minneapolis Police Department. The training manual also doesn’t lie. Floyd was no hero, no martyr. His lifestyle caught up to him that day.

John Morgan, Burnsville

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Retrospectively, I think murder was the wrong description, the wrong charge. There was no intent by the officers to plan to end Floyd’s life. Manslaughter would have been more accurate.

I muse that things would have ended differently if Floyd had complied with the directions of the officers involved. Obviously, the escalation by the officers resulted in the tragedy, and these maneuvers utilized were unnecessary, given the circumstances of the arrest. I think the resulting outrage and destruction of property was understandable, but likely disproportionate.

I have difficulty second-guessing individuals in the heat at the moment. Granted, the circumstances should’ve been handled better, and hopefully training will be improved to avoid this type of altercation in the future. Nonetheless, how does a society balance the need for laws and the enforcement of them with the need for rational adjudication at the time of intervention?

Joe Rinowski, Bloomington

What meaningful change do you hope will happen in the next five years?

I hope that we can develop the ability as a community to more quickly establish a shared truth about events such as the murder of George Floyd, and address misinformation, underlying criminal justice issues and systemic racism more effectively. I also hope that appropriate memorials can be agreed upon and built in less than five years.

Peter Steinhagen, St. Paul

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I’ve long believed Minnesotans are more enlightened than others about the problems that face our society — we are “above average,” after all — but Floyd’s murder made us an epicenter of racial reckoning around the world and caused us to be acutely aware of how much race matters in our community, despite our “color-blind” ideals. We are uncomfortable with this ugly truth, but we need to confront it if we seek to do better. The angst we experienced five years ago humbled us, but honestly facing where we have fallen short is the first step in bringing about the healing we need. None of us want to see tragedies like this continue to occur, and the lessons we have learned will help lead us to a better place in the next five years and beyond. By committing ourselves to a path of becoming our better selves, I am hopeful we can someday be the enlightened community we aspire to be.

Joe Green, Edina

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After Floyd’s murder, the amount of interest from a wide array of sources in trying to correct racial injustice surprised and pleased me. Although the riots and property destruction were unfortunate, I could understand the rage behind these actions. It was heartening to see so many corporations and organizations take a stand and initiate efforts to acknowledge racial inequalities and create policies to encourage positive change. Unfortunately, many organizations have recently cut back on those policies.

In light of the Trump administration’s war on all diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, I hope to see in the coming years more corporations, schools and local and state governments stand up to attempts to bully leaders into abandoning DEI efforts as bad or unfair. I hope to see Democrats speak out to dispel the lies about DEI. In their best form, affirmative action and DEI programs have always been about leveling the playing field and removing bias to give everyone (regardless of skin color, gender, sexual orientation, disability and country of origin) the same opportunities and considerations based on their skills and merits. These folks do not need a handout, just a fair chance that has historically been denied them.

Anthony Keenan, Columbia Heights

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My hope for the Black community of Minneapolis is that it can find its way out of the post-George-Floyd dead-end of victimhood that it’s accepted for itself.

Craig Anderson, Minneapolis

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I would like to see the bickering stop between factions who think they know best and have the city come up with a reasonable compromise for a simple memorial that recognizes the seriousness of the incident but lets the neighborhood move on to have thriving businesses and hopeful residents living together without the harsh limelight of media expectations to solve world peace.

Ronn Williamson, Edina

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Floyd helped win the election for Joe Biden in 2020 and Donald Trump in 2024. After Floyd’s murder, it gave the social justice warrior crusade a triple shot of espresso — giving us figures like Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty and concepts like “defund the police.” Unfortunately, it also put the MAGA movement on a heavy dose of steroids. And you’re seeing consequences of that pushback play out right now. It’s why it almost becomes impossible to think about anything farther out than the next 100 days.

My deepest hope five years from now is that the political pendulum will have found its way back to the center and that we will have elected a moderate Democrat/Republican in 2028. And that we will be making justice-related policy (all policy, for that matter) not based on our raw emotions but rather on common sense — that we will be taking into account both the need for public safety and humanity for all. My expectations are low.

Daniel Wiechert, North Mankato, Minn.

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This blatant public murder exposed so many faults in the Minneapolis Police Department. I hope to see change that will address at least the following. There was almost no past discipline of Derek Chauvin in spite of many serious complaints about his racist violence. He had “coaching,” which amounted to nothing, and left virtually no disciplinary record. There was no screening for who could become a training officer.

The other officers on the scene felt no responsibility to stop him from killing Floyd, even though they were all told by an EMT on the scene that Chauvin‘s actions were dangerous. The department’s first statements about Floyd’s death were false. All these deep problems in the MPD need to be properly addressed. And let’s not wait five more years.

John Stuart, Minneapolis

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One first step toward justice is the courageous recognition of injustice.

Acknowledging injustice, especially when it doesn’t directly impact your community, demands a willingness to step outside familiar boundaries and stand in solidarity with others. It requires courage and effort to understand the lived experiences of those facing persecution and oppression. In the days following Floyd’s murder, we saw this courage as Minnesotans, and people across the globe, took to the streets, united in recognizing profound injustice.

However, recognition, while a necessary first step, is not the destination. It is merely the launching pad for meaningful action. The path toward true justice requires tangible remediation, reconciliation and a redirection of systems to prevent such tragedies from recurring. And this takes time.

Five years later, we face a growing fear to speak about the injustices we see.

Rather than retreat, we must raise our voices. We must call attention to murdered and missing Indigenous women, prejudice against Muslims and Jews, attacks on immigrants and LGBTQ individuals. And we must continue to demand solutions to the racism and violence against Black communities, once and for all.

Our first steps mattered. Our next steps — those of resolute action that demonstrate we will never forget Floyd — matter more.

Eric Jolly, St. Paul

The writer is president and CEO of the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation.

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The worldwide outpouring of anger and grief following Floyd’s murder was best expressed through the actions of countless artists, from murals and monumental street paintings to protest songs and performances, and it is through the active involvement of artists over the next five years — working closely with and for community stakeholders — that George Floyd Square must evolve and grow into a meaningful and compelling site of remembrance and resistance, a highly valued public place that supports and programs creative collaborations year-round.

Jack Becker, Minneapolis

Final thoughts

For decades, people of color have had to have “the talk” with their children about how to deal with the police. The NAACP program “The 411 on the Five-O” lays out so well how people of color (and everyone for that matter) should behave when dealing with the police. It surprises me that not once have I ever heard anyone condemn the behavior of George Floyd that led up to his death as being the exact opposite of what parents of color and the NAACP have been telling children to do for decades.

After the funeral for Floyd, his supporters turned to Minneapolis Police Department management for answers. MPD management pointed the finger at the union. His supporters bit into the union and never let go. News flash! The union didn’t have the power to hire, fire, direct or promote anyone in the MPD. The union can’t make policy, doesn’t give orders, isn’t responsible for what is being trained and isn’t responsible for dealing with “bad apples” in the department. It was management that rightfully needed to be pursued, and I am surprised that seemingly no one has ever figured that out.

John Mattsen, New Brighton

The writer is a retired federal law enforcement officer.

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I’m so over it. Let’s move on.

Jason Baumberger, Chaska

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Before George Floyd it felt like society just didn’t see us. Police violence and systematic racism have been incredibly common, and I’ve watched people justify murders based on some character flaw the individual had since I was a teenager. We’ve had videos of police violence before and it never seemed to move the needle to more accountability.

After Floyd was murdered, everyone insisted this time was different. That we all now understood and were going to fix this. I made a lot of people angry by suggesting that nothing would ultimately change. That people would go right back to not caring.

Unfortunately for all of us, I was proven right. Common-sense reforms were killed in Minneapolis, Hennepin County and the rest of the country. We’re not allowed to mention the words diversity, equity and inclusion without risking severe backlash. People are still being shot in the back, during racially profiled traffic stops, or while they sleep with little to no repercussions.

Now I know that people do see the injustices, they just don’t care.

Austin Bell, Maplewood