Why the George Floyd Protests Persisted, and What Steps to Take to Fix Policing in America
Revisiting Policing Expert Cedric Alexander’s 2020 CHQ Assembly Conversation
Throughout Black History Month, we’re showcasing recent programs from Chautauqua stages and online platforms that have given voice to the Black experience in America. These words and images provide critical context for the important and difficult work — and action — to which this moment calls us, to advance the cause of justice.
In early July, we were honored to host Cedric Alexander, the CNN contributor and former president of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, on CHQ Assembly to help us unpack ongoing protests against racism and injustice in the wake of George Floyd’s murder. In his conversation with Chautauqua President Michael E. Hill, Alexander drew a direct line connecting Jim Crow-era police oppression of Black citizens to more recent examples of brutality and death at the hands of law enforcement. The names of the victims echo painfully in our national memory: Rodney King, Michael Brown, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor among them.
Referencing Floyd’s murder, Alexander said, “So here we are now, in 2020, with the horrible event that we all witnessed in front of us, a murder that took place shamelessly by four officers who appeared to just do have no moral compass, no sense of humanity and an inability to have any compassion to someone who was begging for their life, and even begging for their mother, as life was leaving (their) body — in people standing there on the streets begging officers to let him breathe … even up to the point that he could not breathe anymore,” Alexander said.
Why have the George Floyd protests persisted—over more than 40 days at that point, nationwide — in ways that past protests did not? Hill asked.
Picking up The Chautauquan Daily’s coverage:
Alexander said that forces have been developing over time, particularly in recent years. The protests following Brown’s death in 2014 saw a diverse group of people in attendance. In the protests following Floyd’s death on May 25, 2020, there has been a resurgence of young people and multiple generations “who are all taking a stand against racism in this country, against sexism, against homophobia, against all the -isms that are out there.”
Social media plays a role, Alexander said, allowing thousands of people to organize like never before. Social media also contributed to the rapid sharing of cellphone footage taken of Floyd’s arrest and death, which was witnessed by people across the United States, and around the world.
“Anybody who had any type of humanity about themselves, it rips your heart out of your chest, and we knew, at that very moment, that something very different needs to happen in this country,” Alexander said.
People of color often weren’t believed when they told their experiences of racism until body cameras and cell phone cameras were invented, Alexander said. He also said that people are not only talking about change they would like to see, but are also taking action to make change happen.
“I am so proud to be an American. I’m so proud to be a part of a country that is 244 years old, and in spite of the challenges that we … struggle through in our short period of time on this planet, we have accomplished a lot,” Alexander said. “But we still have a lot of work to do.”
That work when it comes to policing, Alexander proposed, based on his work and findings as a member of President Barack Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing, needs to start with building or rebuilding trust between police and the communities they serve. He also mentioned the report’s recommendation to create restrictions on police departments’ access to surplus military equipment, the proliferation of which in recent years “gives the impression that we’re at war with our communities.”
Finally, Alexander implored all Americans, of all backgrounds, to take personal responsibility.
“We all of us harbor some bias towards some person, place, or thing. And if we do, we need to be able to acknowledge it,” he said. “And once we acknowledge it, we need to be able to engage it.”
