George Floyd’s family gathered as they kneel for 8 minutes and 46 seconds outside the courthouse holding the trial of former officer Derek Chauvin.
The former police officer is facing charges of second-degree unintentional murder, second-degree manslaughter, and third-degree murder for killing Floyd during his arrest last year.
Chauvin pleaded not guilty to the charges. His trial began on March 29, in the courthouse in downtown Minneapolis.
George Floyd’s family, together with Rev. Al Sharpton, Attorney Benjamin Crump, and BLM supporters decided to kneel outside the courthouse before going in for the beginning of the trial.
Sharpton explained that the family chose to kneel for eight minutes and 46 seconds, ‘to show the world how long it took for Chauvin to have his knee on that neck.’
While this was the amount of time given in the complaint, the Hennepin County Attorney’s office said it was only for seven minutes and 46 seconds, CNN reported.
Floyd’s death has sparked Black Lives Matter protests all over the world and calls for justice for Black people harmed by police officers.
“We are taking a knee for eight minutes and 46 seconds, and we want you to think of during that time why Chauvin didn’t, in that time, get his knee up,” Sharpton said in a news conference.
Sharpton added that the family will go through a very painful and very tumultuous few weeks.
“It’s not only bad enough that they had to lose their brother, their loved one but they now have to, in front of the world, see this over and over again,” he said.
Philonise Floyd, George’s brother, expressed his gratitude to the protesters who stood up for justice for his late brother and said that he hopes Chauvin will get convicted.
After Floyd’s death, Chauvin was held at a maximum-security prison for five months until he posted a $1 million bail bond in October 2020.