Washington [US], May 26: Americans across the country are remembering George Floyd five years after he was killed by police, with special gatherings in the city where he grew up and the one where he died.
The murder of Floyd, a black man, in Minneapolis by police officer Derek Chauvin led to nationwide protests against racism and police brutality. On Sunday, Floyd's family gathered in their hometown of Houston near Floyd's gravesite for an event led by the Rev Al Sharpton, while Minneapolis held several commemorations.
What many hailed as a national "reckoning" with racism after Floyd's death, though, seems to be fading as President Donald Trump starts to roll back police reforms in Minneapolis and other cities.
In Minneapolis, community members planned a morning church service, a candlelight vigil and an evening gospel concert on Sunday to remember Floyd. The events were a part of the annual Rise and Remember Festival taking place in George Floyd Square, the intersection where Floyd was murdered and which has since been named to honour him.
"Now is the time for the people to rise up and continue the good work we started," Angela Harrelson, Floyd's aunt and co-chair of the Rise and Remember nonprofit, said in a statement about the festival.
In Houston, where Floyd grew up and where he is buried, local organisations planned poetry sessions, musical performances and speeches by local pastors.
Floyd was murdered in 2020 during a police arrest in Minneapolis when Chauvin, a white police officer, stood on his neck for more than nine minutes. The killing - captured on a bystander's phone camera - sparked global outrage and a wave of demonstrations against racial injustice and police use of force. (Agencies)
Source: Qatar Tribune
