Two years since police lynching of George Floyd

A poem by Kennedy Kilos

It’s been two years.

Two years of unrest and unease.

Two years of grieving and ache.

And despite the fact that Derek Chauvin was convicted,

It nonetheless doesn’t really feel the identical.

It doesn’t really feel like justice has been served.

It doesn’t really feel secure strolling down the road, flinching when the sound of police sirens whizz by.

At any time when I go to George Floyd’s memorial, I’m immediately transported again to the day that he was killed and reminded of who’s chargeable for his demise.

And I really feel offended.

Indignant that one other Black man was killed for nothing.

Like he was nobody, like his life was price nothing.

It’s been two years and I’m nonetheless offended.

Each time I activate the information, I hear in regards to the demise of a Black man, whether or not it was by police, or by members of his personal neighborhood.

I don’t need my little brother to develop up pondering that his life is dispensable.

That his life doesn’t matter.

But when we’re consistently having to function in a cycle of violence and trauma and demise, how do you see previous that?

How do you be taught to worth life?

As a result of our Black youths must be taught that we matter.

That Our lives matter.

That Black lives matter. 

We must always not need to worry that any interplay with a police officer might be our final.

We must always by no means need to worry that driving down the road, or strolling right into a comfort retailer may value us our life.

Life.

George Floyd ought to have by no means misplaced his life.

He ought to have by no means have needed to cry out,“I can’t breathe”

“I can’t breathe”

“I can’t breathe”

As he pleaded to the officers

Pleaded to the very officers who swore to guard and serve

And all our neighborhood may do was watch because the officer held him down

Forcing his knee into his neck 

Ignoring his final makes an attempt at survival

Till George Floyd lay immobile

Derek Chauvin kneeled on George Floyd’s neck for 9 and ½ minutes

Whereas the three different officers did nothing to cease him

Whereas my neighborhood watched

With tears in our eyes, we watched

Because the breath escaped our personal our bodies, we watched 

We watched because the officers dragged his lifeless, handcuffed physique onto a stretcher

We watched as a result of if they may try this to him, they may try this to us

There was no mercy for George Floyd, no hope, nobody there to save lots of him

And when George Floyd died, so did my neighborhood’s religion within the Minneapolis Police Division

The very fact of the matter is that George Floyd shouldn’t be the one one

He’s not the one unarmed Black man that has been murdered by the palms of the Minneapolis Police Division

It’s been two years

And whereas it looks as if many have moved on from the thrill of George Floyd

My neighborhood will always remember

We’re remains to be processing and making an attempt to rebuild

The demise of George Floyd lit a fire within the metropolis of Minneapolis, setting off waves of protests around the globe, towards the criminalization of black and brown folks by regulation enforcement

However sufficient is sufficient

My neighborhood remains to be grieving and nonetheless therapeutic

However we’re right here and we is not going to cease preventing till our lives are valued and till justice has been served