Jesse Milan Jr., president and CEO of AIDS United issued the following statement after Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer who killed George Floyd, was found guilty of murder:
“Today’s result is welcome. The evidence was overwhelming. Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd. Those nine minutes were a modern-day lynching. There can be no doubt.
“One guilty verdict is not going to undo the long history of bad verdicts and failed justice. While I am relieved that the jury did the right thing, this is only a tiny step on the road toward racial justice, and the road is very long.
“While the criminal justice system in the United States has long roots in white supremacy, this must not only be about the police. Systemic racism is all around us. It’s in housing and education, employment and health care. It has shown up in the COVID-19 pandemic. And we’ve seen it for decades in the HIV epidemic.
“Black and Brown people should not be afraid of the systems that are charged with protecting our health, safety and well-being. We must root out and dismantle white supremacy from our criminal justice system, from our health care systems and from within our own organizations.”
